world map of palliative care development
What is the current status of palliative care development?
The World Map of Palliative Care Development is an important source of information for individuals and organisations involved in promoting the global development of palliative care.
The first map was created in 2006 and the second in 2012.
On these maps, each of the 234 UN-recognised countries in the world is placed into different levels of palliative care development, starting from 'no known activity', to 'approaching integration' or 'advanced integration'. This allows us to see the level of provision of palliative care in each country at a given time.
Data from each of these maps has since been used by a range of activists, and the World Health Organization used it to inform its palliative care strategy.
Data from the second World Map of Palliative Care Development is included in the first WHO Global Atlas of Palliative Care at the End of Life (2014).
Our research objectives
In our current research we hope to learn how the field of global palliative care is developing when measured against a pre-determined set of development indicators.
Our aim is for the information we gather in 2018 to be comparable with the results of the earlier world mapping studies.
The specific objectives of the study are to:
- monitor developments in global palliative care since 2006
- depict palliative care development in the form of a world map
- implement methodological improvements, based on commentaries and critiques relating to the previous ‘world map’ studies
By showing change over time this updated map will provide a valuable tool for advocacy, helping organisations to assess the progress of national and international palliative care development.
We expect to present an updated World Map of Palliative Care Development at the UN General Assembly for Non-communicable Diseases in September 2018.
We expect data from this third World Map to appear in the second WHO Global Atlas of Palliative Care at the End of Life, which is due to be published in late 2018.
Our research team
Medical sociologist Professor David Clark is leading the project, with the research being carried by health geographer in collaboration with the ATLANTES Programme at the University of Navarra and the Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance (WHPCA).
This work is being supported by the Wellcome Trust.
World map of palliative care development 2006
world map of palliative care development 2012
