Maggie Barry: All Parliamentary Group on Palliative Care
3 August 2012
Maggie Barry Announces All Parliamentary Group on Palliative Care
North Shore Member of Parliament, Maggie Barry, today announced the formation of an All Parliamentary Group on Palliative Care.
“This is a significant step toward helping promote a better understanding among politicians about the outstanding level of palliative care available in this country. I intend this to be a group that can work constructively, across party lines to focus on improving the quality of life for those with life-limiting conditions. It will be an opportunity to foster discussion around the challenges of providing palliation in caring for people with chronic diseases and dementia, advance planning and the health economics of palliative care.
The NZ All Parliamentary Group has been established in partnership with Hospice NZ and the palliative care sector will be modelled on similar ones internationally, including the UK All Party Parliamentary Group on Dying Well.
“We look forward to welcoming the eloquent Baroness Finlay of Llanduff, who chairs the UK All Party Parliamentary Group on Dying Well, as the guest speaker at our inaugural meeting.” Ilora Finlay is an Independent Crossbench member of the British House of Lords, a professor of palliative medicine and a past president of the Royal Society of Medicine.
In 1998 Maggie Barry chaired a working party into ‘Care of people who are dying’ and is a past patron of Mary Potter Hospice and Hospice New Zealand.
The All Parliamentary Group’s inaugural meeting will be held in the Executive Wing 2.03/04 on Thursday 16 August from 1-145pm which the media are very welcome to attend.
ENDS