Postgraduate courses and awards in palliative care
Abstract
EditorialPostgraduate courses and awards in palliative care SAGE Publications, Inc.1992DOI: 10.1177/026921639200600401 Ian Maddocks Daw House Hospice, Daw Park, South Australia 5041, Australia In common with the other specialities in medicine and nursing, palliative care constitutes only a small component of undergraduate training, and first degree students are not expected to be competent in its practice. Further training for specialist practice in palliative care is necessary both for the young graduate and for the mature practitioner attracted out of another discipline. Specialist training can be achieved by completing specified experience in designated training posts. The advanced training programmes for physicians, now established in the UK' and in Australasia, have ensured that a well-trained medical leadership for palliative care will become available in those countries. But many doctors who direct independent hospices or offer support for community care programmes are family practitioners, and will not aspire to enter a consultant training programme which requires a period of up to four years of directed experience. Outside the training for consultants there has been little opportunity for medical graduates to engage in more than seminars or conferences. In the USA, for example, dedicated family physicians who offer medical support to home care