Hospice and Palliative Care Association of New York State, Inc.

Caring for children with life-limiting illnesses has extraordinary challenges. Pediatric palliative care can be provided in the hospital or in the home, though in many communities across New York State, hospice and palliative care personnel are not trained or staffed to meet the unique needs of children and families outside of the hospital.

The HPCANYS Interdisciplinary Pediatric Palliative Care (HIPPC) training is designed to educate both facility-based and community-based care providers in concepts that span care settings, support each stage of care, and ease transitions between hospital and home care. With support from NYHealth, HPCANYS expanded access to pediatric palliative care services by building capacity among providers across the State and through the creation of a virtual Center for Excellence in Pediatric Palliative Care.

HPCANYS planned to meet the growing demand for HIPPC trainings by enacting a faculty development program that would create 12 additional HIPPC faculty teams across the State within two years. It also developed an expanded training curriculum that promoted standard pediatric palliative care concepts and practices to a larger audience. HPCANYS worked with a web developer to create a virtual Center for Excellence in Pediatric Palliative Care that served as a statewide resource hub for practitioners. The Center showcased innovative children’s palliative care programs throughout the State and will share current best practices and regulatory updates. HPCANYS contracted with an independent evaluator to develop and implement an integrated evaluation and monitoring process to ensure each component of the regional faculty trainings is effective.