EPC Foundations: Fast-Track Training for Palliative Care Professionals

A program for novice community palliative care workers

Course Summary

EPC Foundations is a comprehensive ten-day training course delivered over two to five weeks. It is designed to fast-track new EPC palliative care nursing and allied health professionals from novice to advanced beginner, ensuring a pathway to the delivery of safe and proficient community palliative care. The course aims to support risk reduction, enhance competence, and retain new staff through multidisciplinary and streamlined education.

Course Development and Broad Structure

The EPC Foundations course is grounded in pragmatism, emphasizing practical teaching of skills. It covers all main symptom groups within palliative care, linking physiology to symptom origins, causes, and management. Students engage in hands-on practice with symptom assessment and management, with a thorough focus on:

• Safety and Independence in the community
• End-of-life care
• Thorough symptom assessment and management
• Therapeutic communication
• Psychosocial needs of clients and carers

Key Features

Duration: 10 days, delivered over 2-5 weeks
Teaching Format: Face-to-face
Instructors: Skilled team of medical, allied health, and nursing experts
Learning Needs: Consideration of individual learning needs is given via individual phone assessments
Assessments: Observational assessments of simulated home visits
Resources: A palliative care 'toolkit', designed specifically to the course for reference

Course Aims

EPC Foundations aims to develop students to be safe, confident, and competent in delivering community palliative care independently.

Objectives include:

1. Developing a strong foundation in palliative care principles
2. Developing comprehensive skills in assessing and managing symptoms in palliative care, ensuring effective patient care.
3. Providing high-quality, patient-centred palliative care to enhance quality of life
4. Identifying and managing potential risks in community palliative care
5. Mastering effective communication in palliative care by improving difficult conversations, initiating sensitive end-of-life discussions, utilizing timing, empathy, and active listening, validating emotions, using silence for reflection, and fostering mutual understanding and respect.
6. Effectively communicating and collaborating within multidisciplinary teams
7. Gaining confidence and job satisfaction through comprehensive training and understanding of reflective practice and self-care.

Admission requirements

• Nursing or AH staff who have been employed in community palliative care for less than 12 months.
• Able to attend all days of the course
• No booked leave during course dates
• Endorsement by community palliative care manager

Learning Outcomes

1. Establish, maintain, and adapt therapeutic relationships with individuals with life-limiting illnesses, their caregivers, and families
2. Negotiate mutually agreed goals of care and facilitate person-centred decision-making
3. Demonstrate comprehensive palliative care knowledge and skills to meet complex physical and symptom needs
4. Collaborate effectively with healthcare teams to promote optimal palliative care outcomes
5. Understand the process of dying and respond to the needs of patients and families approaching end-of-life
6. Recognize and manage risks associated with working independently in the community
7. Perform practical skills such as drawing up support medications and using syringe drivers
8. Recognise the importance of reflective practice and identify strategies and supports to care for self.

Assessments and Evaluations

EPC Foundations follows a continuous evaluation process, constantly reviewing and measuring the course against its learning outcomes and intentions.

Observational Assessments: Conducted during simulated home visits, learners are assessed by the same observer at multiple points during the course. These assessments integrate the PCNA competency standard domains and the Victorian Community Palliative Care Managers Forum novice to advanced skills matrix. They assess the learner’s ability to conduct a home visit integrating their symptom assessment, communication and anticipatory care skills. Feedback and results are given to learners during each assessment.

The learners also do pre and post self-evaluations of their confidence in community palliative care skills.

Registration closes 21 days before the course. No registration on the day. Payment is required to confirm booking.

For any queries or for further information, please contact epc-foundationsadmin@epc.asn.au or fill in the query box below and we will respond. We look forward to supporting you on your journey to becoming a proficient palliative care professional.