Improving palliative care access for the Brisbane North PHN community

Palliative care is increasingly recognised as an important area of health need across our community, with demand to increase significantly over the next decade. This National Palliative Care Week (11-17 May 2026) we take the opportunity to share some of the work of the PHN in this critical area.

Access to quality palliative care should be available for all Australians of any age living with a life-limiting condition, including, but not limited to, dementia, heart disease and cancer. 

Palliative care is about maintaining quality of life. It identifies and treats symptoms and issues associated with life-limiting illness, which may be physical, emotional, spiritual or social. The aim of palliative care is neither to hasten nor postpone death. Rather, the focus is on living as well as possible, for as long as possible.

Brisbane North PHN’s recent Palliative Care Needs Assessment confirmed the population in the North Brisbane and Moreton Bay region is growing and ageing—and with it, the demand for palliative care is rising. It found that for the leading causes of death in our region, palliative care is applicable.

Unfortunately, a major barrier to access in the region is awareness of services and support, as well as being able to navigate the system. This need for improved awareness and navigation is applicable to everyone: health professionals, consumers, carers and the wider community. 

Brisbane North PHN, with the Brisbane North Palliative Care Collaborative, is working to improve access through several key projects. Supported by funding from the Department of Health, Disability, and Ageing under the Greater Choice for At Home Palliative Care program, the PHN will be working with professionals and the community on these initiatives through to 2029. Work includes: 

• workforce education and training to support knowledge, skills and confidence of individuals and strengthening networks between sectors and organisations
• working with community to enable compassionate communities that promote agency and choice for people with a life limiting illness, as well as their family and carers
• strengthening connections between sectors and organisations through facilitating stakeholder networking, information exchange and collaboration. 

The full Palliative Care Needs Assessment report and the PHN response to the Needs Assessment can be found on our website.  

National Palliative Care Week

This year’s theme for National Palliative Care Week is: Getting to the heart of it: Big Questions. Real Answers. It aims to make palliative care easier to understand by encouraging honest questions and offering clear, human answers. Conversations about palliative and end-of-life care reduce fear and improve understanding. The earlier conversations start, the more people with life-limiting illness feel supported, in control and connected.

But, conversations around palliative care are often avoided because they can feel confronting or ‘too soon’ and many people aren’t sure what palliative care is or when it can help. National Palliative Care Week is a chance to change that by encouraging earlier conversations and connecting people to trusted information, tools and support.

Access a suite of tools and resources developed for health care professionals on the Palliative Care Australia website.