The Social Work in Hospice and Palliative Care Network (SWHPN)

An emerging network of social work organizations and leaders who seek to further the field of end-of-life and hospice/palliative care Aims to advance the role of the social worker in caring for the seriously ill, providing relief from pain, improving quality of life, supporting family and friends, assisting with difficult decision- making, and help in dealing with trauma, grief and loss.

The network originally grew out of the Social Work Leadership Development Award Program (SWLDA), sponsored by the Open Society Institute's Project on Death in America (PDIA) a project of the Soros Foundation. The program helped coordinate the 1st Social Work Summit on End-of-Life and Palliative Care in 2002, which through a consensus process created a priority map for furthering the field. The 2nd Social Work Summit in June of 2005 created a steering committee and other concrete next steps.

Goals of SWPHN Build consensus within the profession Create intra-professional and inter-professional partnerships Develop a social work specific knowledge base in palliative and end-of-life care Disseminate information to the social work community (national and international) and across professions Collaborate on program initiatives and resource- sharing Further development of capacity and advancement in the field

Funded by the Open Society Institute and member contributions Annual meeting held in conjunction with the American Academy of Hospice & Palliative Medicine/ Hospice & Palliative Nurses Association Conference Currently over 200 members and 1300 contacts

Membership Services Online professional networking through LinkHealthPro (interactive online community) --access to other health care professionals in hospitals and universities Newsletters and Eblasts on current developments in palliative and end-of-life care Advance information on professional conferences Access to data collected on professional interests in the field Opportunities for collaborations with physicians, nurses and multidisciplinary professional organizations