Liz has been involved with Hospice Care Kenya (HCK) since 2000 as a Trustee and was Chair for a number of  years.

Founded in 1991, to support the newly-opened Nairobi Hospice (Kenya’s first hospice), HCK trains health professionals and community volunteers to provide palliative care, provides free drugs and pain relief, and supports community outreach to care for isolated and house-bound patients. HCK currently supports 18 hospices and training programmes across Kenya to strengthen and expand the availability of palliative care and hospice services.

Only one in ten Kenyans have access to palliative care services. There are no specialist services for children, and only one percent of children have access to palliative care. HCK believes that people with terminal and life-limiting illness have a right to live with dignity, free from pain and suffering.

HCK work with partners to change this by supporting them to  develop and deliver quality palliative care services. This includes training of specialist Nurses and Community Workers, providing drugs, medical equipment and transport provision, supporting families of patients and training family carers. They also support Kenya Hospices Palliative Care Association’s (KEHPCA) research and deliver advocacy and work to raise awareness to ensure that palliative care continues to develop and becomes integrated into government health care provision in the future.

Hospice Care Kenya is a registered UK charity (number 1141469).