This project assessed medical students' knowledge of and attitudes towards palliative care after completing a placement at Hospice Africa Uganda (HAU). As part of its education program, HAU provides palliative care training to health workers, including medical students from Makerere University. The goal of student placements is to expose them to practical palliative care and the realities patients face. A survey of 59 students found that after their HAU placement, 100% agreed palliative care can improve quality of life, 91% supported early palliative care intervention, and 60% were willing to work in palliative care. The project demonstrates that clinical palliative care placements improve knowledge and attitudes towards palliative care.

1. Theme: palliative care education: Assessing medical students’ knowledge of and attitude towards
palliative care after placement at HAU
Give a brief introduction covering the issue: As part of its education program, Hospice Africa Uganda
(HAU) engages in teaching health workers across all cadres about palliative care. Since its inception in
1993, medical students at Makerere University have undergone placement in palliative care at HAU. This
form of placement is intended to expose them to the practical aspects of palliative care and the realities
in the homes of the suffering sick.
What is this project / research / presentation about? Why is it interesting / important?
To achieve its goal of increasing access to palliative care, HAU started up a unique programme together
with Makerere University and Ministry of Health which incorporated palliative care in the
undergraduate medicine curriculum, part of this includes a 4 day placement at Hospice Africa Uganda.
They also spend a day in the palliative care unit of Mulago National Referral Hospital.
Explain what gap your project is addressing and how it can be filled.
With the increasing population coupled with increasing HIV prevalence and cancer patients annually,
Uganda has patients that are continuously dying in a lot of pain and uncontrolled distresses. This is
multifactorial ranging from their choice to poor or distant health facilities poverty and preference for
traditional healers. To address this gap, this program was initiated to make sure that doctors who
graduate from Makerere University have knowledge and skills of palliative care.
Give an outline of the methods you will use or a description of the project.
This was a survey done using a questionnaire of 8 questions that was filled by medical students who
rotated at HAU in 2012 at the end of their placement.
Outline your results / outcomes of the project and what we learn from them.
Of the total 59 medical students that filled out the questionnaires; 100% agreed that there is always
something that can be done to improve quality of life despite how advanced or whatever treatments
have been given, 91% supported early palliative care intervention,60% of the students are willing to
work in a palliative care setting, 71% of the students knew that palliative care is not what is done when
nothing more can be done, 85% of the students knew that oral morphine used for pain control is not
addictive
Tell us what recommendations you believe can be derived from the project.: Clinical Palliative care
placements of medical students as shown by the results above increases knowledge and improves
attitude and should be done for all learners. Incorporation of palliative care in training curriculum of
health workers in Africa will help in increasing access to palliative care to those in need of it.