Palliative Care Week 2025

This week, WA Country Health Service (WACHS) is marking Palliative Care Week by reflecting on the remarkable progress made in recent years in the provision of care to people living with life-limiting illness in regional areas.

The health service has committed to providing holistic, accessible, and culturally safe palliative care to country communities – no matter how remote – through initiatives such as our new EMPPATH pilot project.

EMPATH – Essential Medications for Palliative Patients Accessing Treatment at Home – connects and commits participating community pharmacies to continuously stock essential end-of-life medications.

Launched in the South West in mid-April, nearly 60 per cent of eligible community pharmacies in the region had signed up by the end of the month.

This month, we’ll also be launching three new Aboriginal palliative care brochures at Midwest and Kimberley sites in collaboration with Indigenous Program of Experience in the Palliative Approach (IPEPA).

WA Country Health Service Regional Aboriginal Health Liaison Officers partnered with Aboriginal community members to co-design the educational brochures, which reflect cultural connections through appropriate language and regionally-inspired artwork.

Local artists, including Kruize Ryder in the Midwest, contributed unique pieces representing what palliative care means to their communities. 

“This painting (‘Last Wishes’) is about my grandfather who was sick and his connections to family, land, waters, and the night sky,” Kruize said.

“He left teachings with my mum, and she passed it onto me and my brothers.

“He loved going out bush and doing cultural activities. The last time he went bush was when all the family went camping before he passed from terminal illness.

“He loved being out on Country and the camping trip was the one thing he wanted to do before he passed.”

Palliative Care Week is an important reminder to continue raising awareness and advocating for better access to and acceptance of end-of-life care.

It’s also an opportunity to recognise the exceptional work of our palliative care teams, who provide support, guidance, and person-centred care to patients, their families, and their carers when they need it most.