The study of palliative care in humanitarian crises is in its infancy. Limited existing research, policies and programs often make assumptions that palliative care barely exists in crisis contexts; or about how easy or hard it is to ‘do’ palliative care, what communities are missing, and what needs to happen next. Hearing those on the inside – their fears, dreams, existing ways of caring, and ideas for their own futures – is critical.

 

This research is about understanding caring for the seriously ill and dying in situations of extreme crisis, with a focus on armed conflict. It asks: What are meanings of suffering, illness and dying amidst compounded issues of oppression and war? What are the trade-offs and wicked decisions in deciding how and to whom to deliver care in war? What are the values and cultures that shape caring responses of those living through crisis? And what are the various ways in which communities continue to front up and respond to suffering with whatever means available? What does palliative care look like across diverse humanitarian contexts?

 

This presentation draws on the rich and personal stories shared through 58 in-depth interviews with participants in the Gaza Strip conducted during 2020/2021.

 

In Gaza, communities endure not only individual, but also collective - social and political - experiences of suffering; and provide collective ways of caring with finite resources. The accumulated exposure of communities to oppression and war changes standard ideas of caring for the seriously ill and dying. There is no singular path to a palliative care future for those facing crisis. New ways of creating meaningful discourse, research and practice are needed to understand plural futures for palliative care across diverse humanitarian settings. This is about listening to, and learning from, those on the inside of crisis.

 

What does palliative care look like in humanitarian crisis? It doesn’t exist, does it? We know the way, right? “A lot of what I do is palliative care. A lot of it”. Hearing those on the inside of crisis to shape plural palliative care futures.