Miriam Mutebi: How we can embrace community-centered palliative care that reflects African values and realities

Miriam Mutebi shared on LinkedIn:

“This weekend I spent some time thinking about how we can embrace community-centered palliative and supportive care that’s African-centered.

Palliative care is specialised medical care focused on improving the quality of life for patients facing serious illnesses like cancer. In many parts of the world, palliative care is often misunderstood as end-of-life care and as a result, is underutilised.

Ideally, palliative and supportive care should begin from diagnosis and continue throughout a patient’s cancer journey.

In Africa, western models of palliative care have been dominant and helpful. However, these can also be costly and difficult to implement in low-resource settings. The Lancet highlights the urgent need for palliative care in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where many countries, including those in Africa, lack adequate policies despite significant suffering.

It’s well known that the strength of African societies lies in their rich sense of community. This communal spirit, seen in events like weddings and funerals, should be extended to palliative care, where community-based palliative care approaches reflect African values and realities.

Here are three outstanding AORTIC members driving community-centered palliative care in Africa:

• Dr. Christian Ntizimira, Executive Director of ACREOL in Rwanda, advocates for community-centered care rooted in Ubuntu, emphasizing dignity and cultural wisdom;
• Dr Emmanuel Luyirika, Executive Director of APCA, focuses on affordable,culturally appropriate care across the continent; while
• Dr. Nahla Gafer, Head of the Palliative Care Unit in Khartoum, Sudan, leads palliative care efforts even amid conflict.

As we continue to improve our impact as an African cancer workforce, I encourage those outside the workforce (friends and family of patients) to consider how they too can contribute to community-centered palliative care.

Think, simple acts of kindness, like sitting with a friend during chemotherapy or helping with daily tasks, getting groceries, picking up the kids from school, etc., all can make a world of a difference.

I recall a patient sharing her deep gratitude for a friend who had made it a habit to prepare ‘chapati’ a favorite weekly meal for her kids when she didn’t have the physical strength to do so herself; a great example of what community-centered palliative care that focuses on practical support, and addressing the physical and emotional needs of patients looks like.

At AORTIC- Africa, we are committed to advancing this kind of community engagement and culturally relevant models. Let’s work together to make palliative care accessible, affordable, and effective for everyone.”

Source: Miriam Mutebi/LinkedIn

Miriam Mutebi is a Breast Surgical Oncologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at the Aga Khan University Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. She is also the Vice-President of East Africa of the African Organization for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC), treasurer for the Kenya Society of Hematology and Oncology (KESHO) and on the Board of Directors of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC).

She is the co-founder of the Pan African Women’s Association of Surgeons and is part of the Kenya Association of Women Surgeons. She is an avid supporter for the education and support for women, especially in surgery and she aims to provide mentorship for women in surgery and to improve women’s health and surgical care in Africa. She is currently pursuing a pilot’s license in order to extend breast care services to marginalized areas.