Thiruvananthapuram:The Kerala government on Friday decided to unify all palliative care systems which are being operated in various parts of the state including those run by the Health, Social Justice and Local Self Government departments.
The decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the Chief Secretary of the state was tasked with a blueprint to unify all palliative care systems, a statement issued by his office said. The statement further said it was decided to implement the project by including all the elderly and those bedridden due to illness without any discrimination.
The CM directed that no one in need of palliative care should be left out irrespective of whether they belong to Above Poverty Line or Below Poverty Line category, the statement said. The Local Self-Government department will lead the project and Health and Social Justice departments will provide support, it said.
It was also decided to bring together all the volunteers who are part of the palliative care systems being operated by the various departments. The statement said directions were also issued to register the institutions providing palliative care and the volunteers working there. The statement further stated that an appeal system will be introduced to resolve complaints about registration, and volunteers and nurses will receive training.
It also said that meetings of local body heads, political party representatives and major charity organisations will be held to inform them about project details.
