Globalizing Palliative Care

About Us

Palliative care services are increasingly emerging in diverse cultural settings around the globe. Given the large cultural diversity in end-of-life care practices, we ask: How do global palliative care practices translate to various cultural contexts? How do they impact local notions of death and dying? And how, in turn, do culturally diverse practices of end-of-life care shape the practice of palliative care? This project studies the globalization and cultural mediation of palliative care practices, policies and discourses. Our ethnographic research focuses on three countries that are currently building a system of professional palliative care provisions:

Palliative care services are increasingly emerging in diverse cultural settings around the globe. Given the large cultural diversity in end-of-life care practices, we ask: How do global palliative care practices translate to various cultural contexts?

How do they impact local notions of death and dying? And how, in turn, do culturally diverse practices of end-of-life care shape the practice of palliative care?

This project studies the globalization and cultural mediation of palliative care practices, policies and discourses. Our ethnographic research focuses on three countries that are currently building a system of professional palliative care provisions:
Icon Indonesia_128x128px_web
Indonesia
India
Brazil

In Indonesia palliative care is most developed in a few large tertiary hospitals, but is currently including a growing number professional initiatives across the archipelago. Ethnographic research will focus mainly on Jakarta and Banda Aceh.

India has multiple promising palliative care programmes and initiatives, amongst others a successful community-based palliative care system in Kerala. Research for this project focuses on end-of-life care in the capital of India: New Delhi.

In Brazil, palliative care units and initiatives are concentrated in urban centers and mostly located in hospitals. The research will both take place in institutions and follow families in the home setting. Fieldwork will be carried out in the metropolitan context of Sao Paulo and smaller towns in southern Brazil.

News & Events

Hanum Atikasari in panel discussion on end-of-life care for women with reproductive and breast cancer in Jakarta, Indonesia

March 23, 2022 No Comments

On Wednesday 23 March 2022, Hanum Atikasari was the speaker during the Raboan Discussion Forum on Navigating end-of-life care: an ethnography of women with reproductive and breast cancer in Jakarta, Indonesia. The event was organized by the Center for Bioethics and Medical Humanities, Universitas Gadjah Mada in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. She outlined her research plans and discussed ethical dilemmas in conducting end-of-life research.

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I’m afraid it’s rather bad news – Discussion in De Balie on 9 February 2022

January 14, 2022 No Comments

Wednesday 9 February 2022, Anthony Back, Anne Rios, Jonathan Koffman, Marike de Meij and Evelien van Manten-Horst will discuss the future of the bad news conversation during the program ‘I’m afraid it’s rather bad news’ in De Balie in Amsterdam. What do patients and their families need from their doctors? Are medical professionals properly equipped to deal with this difficult task? The programme is made in collaboration with Dr. Liesbeth van Vliet and Dr. Annemarie Samuels.

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Institute of Cultural Anthropology 

and Development Sociology

 

Leiden University
Wassenaarseweg 52
2333 AK Leiden
The Netherlands
a.samuels@fsw.leidenuniv.nl
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