Sector News

This section will keep you up to date with news in the palliative care sector. Please note that the links below were current at the time of posting, however links may become obsolete as websites update their content.

Priorities for high-quality digitally enabled care

The Australian Commission for Safety and Quality in Health Care has identified Priorities for high-quality digitally enabled care as a roadmap to strengthen care in an evolving digital health environment. The Commission’s four Priorities will help to:

Embed digitally enabled care in clinical governance
Strengthen virtual care quality
Advance connected care through standardised data
Lead system-wide quality improvement in digitally enabled care.

Friday, 01 May 2026

Palliative Care Australia announce appointment of new CEO

Palliative Care Australia has announced the appointment of Dr Chris Hatherly as the organisation’s new Chief Executive Officer. Dr Hatherly will commence with PCA on 8 July 2026. Simon Waring will continue as Interim CEO during this transition.

Wednesday, 29 April 2026

Support at Home: Translated checklists

Support at Home providers can now access updated translated checklists to support older people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. The checklists have been updated to better align with the new Aged Care Act. They can help you discuss a Support at Home service agreement with an older person before their services start. Developed by Partners in Culturally Appropriate Care (PICAC) Northern Territory, the checklists are available in 64 languages.

Tuesday, 21 April 2026

Updating clinical guidelines for dementia care

Monash University is updating the 2016 Clinical Practice Guidelines and Principles of Care for People with Dementia, to help improve the quality and consistency of dementia care. Monash is hosting a webinar on 7 May between 4.00pm and 5.00pm (AEST). The webinar will:

provide a project update
explain the upcoming public consultation process
explain how people can be involved.

Tuesday, 21 April 2026

Ageing in Australia Community Expectations Report 2026 (5.45MB pdf)

Ageing Australia has released a commissioned report to understand older people’s perceptions, experiences and attitudes around ageing well and aged care services. This national community survey involved qualitative and quantitative data collection. The report noted a low level of knowledge about the aged care system, mixed perceptions and attitudes and with most people want to age and die at home.

Monday, 20 April 2026

Guidelines for deprescribing in older people

These new guidelines provide structured recommendations that complement more detailed drug-specific deprescribing guidance, disease-specific therapeutic guidelines and non-pharmacological management resources. These guidelines were developed by a team of 72 experts, including consumer representatives, and were further shaped by feedback from public consultation and independent reviewers. A summary of the guidelines was published in the MJA. The detailed guideline is available at https://deprescribing.com.