PALPRAC

End-of-Life Care in Practice: Supporting Patients, Families and Caregivers 

Write your awesome label here.

Short course

Course type

1 hour

Study time

Online

Mode of learning

3 CPD points

3 Clinical
(70% average required)

Course overview

Caring for patients at the end of life is one of the most profound responsibilities in healthcare — yet many clinicians receive little formal training in how to do it well.

This practical, multidisciplinary course equips healthcare professionals with the knowledge, confidence and communication skills needed to recognise when a patient is entering the terminal phase, manage symptoms effectively, and support families through the process of dying and bereavement.

Drawing on local experience and international best practice, the course integrates clinical guidance with real-world insights, addressing not only symptom control but also communication, co-ordination of care, cultural and medico-legal considerations and the emotional needs of both patients and caregivers.

Learners will leave with a clearer understanding of how to provide compassionate, dignified, and patient-centred care at the end of life — in any setting.
Write your awesome label here.

Who is this course for?

South African Doctors, Interns, Nurses and Pharmacists

Required qualification

The necessary healthcare qualifications for doctors, nurses and pharmacists (or students of these)

Course level

This course is aimed at a Beginner-Intermediate Level. 

Develop your professional skills

Why choose this course?

The Learning Objectives of this course include being able to:

  1. Identify the signs of patients entering the pre-terminal or terminal phase
  2. Communicate the needs of the patient to the family and caregivers
  3. Help the family understand what the patient may experience during this stage of the journey
  4. Review, adapt and titrate medications appropriately for symptom management
  5. Provide support in grief counselling and bereavement care
  6. Describe key medico-legal considerations at the end of life
  7. Recognise and respect cultural aspects influencing terminal care
  8. Explain the role and contribution of Death Doulas in end-of-life care
  9. Appreciate key nuances in end-of-life care

About the academic institution

PALPRAC is a national network of healthcare professionals dedicated to improving quality of life for people living with serious illness. Founded in 2018, we bring together doctors, nurses, and allied health professionals to deliver compassionate, person-centred palliative care across Southern Africa. Through education, advocacy, and collaboration, we equip multidisciplinary teams to relieve suffering, support dignity, and honour what matters most to patients and their families. We support healthcare professionals to be change agents in their own settings, and we engage with the wider health system to drive the changes needed to ensure everyone has access to quality palliative care. All healthcare professionals are welcome to join, with membership options to suit every role and level of experience.

Over 300 members

Various healthcare providers 

Spread across South Africa

PALPRAC contact info

  info@palprac.org

Follow PALRAC on social media

Course Lessons

  • Certificate included

    Upon successful completion of this course - including achieving a minimum score of 70% in the assessment(s), as required by the HPCSA - you will receive a certificate of completion from PALPRAC, a name synonymous with excellence in professional development.

 

Course developer

Public Health Medicine Specialist
Dr Thilo Govender
Dr Thilo Govender is a Public Health Medicine Specialist, having received her MBChB at the University of KwaZulu Natal. She qualified as a Public Health Medicine Specialist in 2000. Thilo has Postgraduate Diplomas in Child Health, Occupational Health, Health Service Management, and in Palliative Medicine which she received from the University of Cape Town in 2015.

Currently she is studying for a Fellowship in Global Palliative Care through the St Christopher’s Hospice in the UK and the Institute of Palliative Medicine in Kerala. She is based at King Dinuzulu Hospital in Durban and has a limited private practice in Palliative Medicine.
Write your awesome label here.
Available on mobile and web

Simplest way to online learning

Download the EMGuidance app for learn on the go. Wherever, Whenever. 
Write your awesome label here.
Write your awesome label here.