Beijing palliative care training expands as Singapore steps in

Program to train over 1,000 healthcare professionals

The Lien Foundation and Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) have launched a three-year palliative care program in Beijing that is expected to train more than 1,000 Chinese healthcare professionals and strengthen service delivery at at least eight institutions in the Chinese capital, according to a press release.

The initiative, called the Lien Palliative Care Collaboration (Beijing), brings together expertise from Singapore and China to build clinical capacity, educate future palliative care leaders, and support long-term policy and ecosystem reforms.

The plan is consistent with China’s national efforts to expand palliative care by addressing gaps such as a shortage of trained specialists and limited public awareness.

Training will be delivered through online teaching modules for physicians, nurses and medical social workers, as well as biennial on-site train-the-trainer workshops.

Online complex case conferences are held every two weeks to share clinical learning between participating institutions.

Selected Chinese doctors will travel to Singapore for four weeks of clinical observation, where they will receive training and exposure to the local palliative care ecosystem. The collaboration also includes the joint development of treatment protocols and practice guidelines suitable for use in China.

A public awareness video is another component of the program designed to support end-of-life conversations between clinicians, patients and their families. The initiative is expected to strengthen palliative care services at participating institutions during its initial three-year term.

Participating institutions in Beijing include Peking Union Medical College Hospital, which has a palliative care unit, Beijing Haidian Hospital, which has a dedicated palliative care unit, and a non-governmental charity organization that supports the training and integration of medical social workers in hospitals.

According to the briefing, through this program, Singaporean doctors will also learn from Chinese doctors the application of traditional Chinese medicine and humanistic care models in end-of-life care.