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White Paper for Global Palliative Care Advocacy: Recommendations from a PAL-LIFE Expert Advisory Group of the Pontifical Academy for Life, Vatican City

The Pontifical Academy for Life (PAV) has released a white paper published in the Journal of Palliative Medicine detailing work from the PAL-LIFE project and outlining strategic recommendations for improving global palliative care. Pope Francis has shown his support of palliative care in the past, stating “Palliative care is an expression of the truly human attitude of taking care of one another, especially of those who suffer. It is a testimony that the human person is always precious, even if marked by illness and old age.” The PAL-LIFE group endorsed 13 stakeholder groups and 43 recommendations including mandatory palliative care courses as part of medical school curricula, mass media should help create a culture of understanding around palliative care’s role in serious illness, and healthcare centers should provide affordable access to palliative care medicines as outlined by the WHO.