WHEREAS the mission of the Prince George Hospice Society is to enhance the quality of life and death of individuals experiencing progressive life threatening illness, and help people work through grief and loss by providing supportive programs and services; AND WHEREAS the Prince George Hospice House is the only facility of its type in northern BC; AND WHEREAS the number of people affected by cancer is growing, two in five Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives, and one of each two diagnosed will die of cancer; AND WHEREAS there will soon be a full service regional cancer clinic in Prince George that will present a range of new opportunities: THEREFORE IT BE RESOLVED that UBCM petition the Province of BC to develop a model of collaboration between hospice palliative care programs, facilities and societies, and regional cancer clinics, to ensure a new standard of excellence in end of life care in British Columbia.
Ministry of Health Services The Ministry of Health Services is committed to establishing high quality end-of-life care as an integral part of British Columbias health system. In collaboration with key provincial health stakeholders, including the Northern Health Authority, the government of British Columbia developed the Provincial Framework for End of Life Care. The framework guides the provision and coordination of hospice palliative end-of-life care in BC and provides a vision of compassionate and high quality hospice palliative end-of-life care. The framework includes a set of principles, one of which is to develop and deliver collaborative services with health authorities, service providers and other organizations to develop a workable and the most effective system of services. To further support palliative care for Northern British Columbians, the government of British Columbia introduced the Northern Cancer Control Strategy NCCS. The NCCS includes developing a regional cancer centre in Prince George, as well as several initiatives to support cancer patients in the North. This includes enhancing Home and Community CarePalliative Care End-of-Life Care services by strengthening the integration among an interdisciplinary team of professionals, as well as increasing telemedicine capacity to strengthen services for palliative clients in Northern communities. The Strategy is a joint initiative among the Northern Health Authority, the Provincial Health Services Authority, BC Cancer Agency and Ministry of Health Services.