Recommended resources

The Southeast PPI Group lead this webinar on on Pain - look deeper, as part of Children's Hospice Week 2023. 

We hear from Dr Emily Harrop about some definitions of pain and parents in discussion of their own experiences. The phrase "look deeper" comes from them, and they ask us to focus on allowing a child and family to be heard. 

Watch time 90 minutes

This short YouTube video is funny description of why we experience pain, and how our previous experience impacts our pain experience.

Although not strictly palliative care, it is a really helpful introduction. 

Time: 15 minutes

3 years part-time blended learning course (or 2 years to finish with diploma), some F2F taught days at the beginning of each year.

It is taught with an all-age approach but with paediatric-specific modules. You should be working with palliative patients clinically alongside, giving real-world applicability to your studies.

Suitable for all members of the multi-disciplinary team.

Find out more here

Research study evaluating paramedic delivery of end of life care.

Current practice and experiences 

Explores the challenges faced, confidence and competence.

Time - Allow 10 minute read.   

Paramedics providing end-of-life care: an online survey of practice and experiences | BMC Palliative Care | Full Text

Presented by Heard, this webinar draws on narrative research and cognitive science to explore how professionals can use framing to improve people’s understanding and decision-making around children’s palliative care.

Attendees said:

Thank you for the opportunity to reflect upon my own practice and tools which I can adapt to my work, and thank you for helping me to recognise the personable things we try to do for families really do make a difference. I will share some of these insights with my colleagues who may not feel as comfortable as me in commencing these discussions. 

Thank you for a powerful presentation, we never stop learning as professionals working with families in palliative care.

I really appreciate the time and consideration given for this session. It was really helpful and lots to think about.

In another of the Southeast PPI Group led webinars, we explore Perceptions of paediatric Palliative care: a parent perspective. 

We introduce the PPI group, explore difficulties in accessing a children's hospice, what access to a hospice can mean for a family and child, and some parent perspectives on how we communicate about palliative diagnoses, and equity of provision. 

Watch time: 90 minutes

This was session was held as a Children's Hospice Week event in June 2022. 

The Southeast PPI group present the latest in their webinar series, discussing Perinatal Palliative Care: no longer in its infancy. 

We hear two stories of palliative care experiences in the neonatal region, and from nurses working across the region to improve understanding of and access to perinatal palliative care, including education initiatives and dedicated posts that are supported by local hospices. 

Key challenges described are around access and understanding, and ways to improve include early identification and relationship building, familiar staff who are engaged in memory making and suitable bereavement spaces, as well as being able to hold uncertainty together. 

Watch time: 75 minutes

From the Learning from Excellence team and Civility Saves Lives, this excellent podcast series gives us conversations with people who inspire us, about making healthcare a better place to work. Topics include forgiveness, compassion, patient safety, human factors and happiness amongst many more. Available via Spotify/Apple or their website:

Learning from Excellence

We particularly recommend series 3, episode 3: Greg Johnston - Chief Executive of Team Evie, who describes eight words to guide us on interactions with patients and families, through telling his daughter Evie's story. 

Team Evie is a charity founded in the memory of his daughter. He reflects on navigating paediatric intensive care as a parent, offering practical guidance for improving care, culture and communication around children with medical complexity and uncertainty. As a teacher in his past, he distils this into eight words, including honesty, humanity and compassion, however it is the stories behind the words which help listeners reflect. What approach might you take? How could you have done differently in a situation?