Bono and Sir Elton John Lend Support for World Hospice and Palliative Care Day

Bono and Sir Elton John Lend Support for World Hospice and Palliative Care Day

Events Planned in More than 70 Countries

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- On October 7, thousands of people around the world will be staging events to raise awareness and fundraise for hospice and palliative care services in observance of World Hospice and Palliative Care Day. This year's theme, Access to Care for All, is a reminder that millions of people who desperately need care at the end of life are not getting it.

Noted celebrities Bono and Sir Elton John have given their support to World Day efforts.

On the World Day Web site, Bono states, "In the poorest countries, where so many people are fighting for their lives, the conditions of death don't get much of a look in. But how we care for the sick and dying is surely a litmus test of our humanity. Just as we fight for equality in life, we should fight for equality in death."

Sir Elton John acknowledges that palliative care is a human right and calls on people around the world to "make their voices heard."

"One of the main goals for World Day is to raise awareness of quality care at the end of life," remarked J. Donald Schumacher, president/CEO of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization and president of the National Hospice Foundation. "This is done by outreach activities at the local, national, and global level."

Hospice organizations across the U.S. will reach out to their communities. Nationally, the National Hospice Foundation's Diana Legacy Fund will initiate its Wheels of Caring program. Wheels of Caring will work to ensure that people living with HIV/AIDs in sub-Saharan Africa receive compassionate, quality care and do not die without comfort and support.

Wheels of Caring, supports the mission of the Foundation for Hospices in Sub-Saharan Africa, and will generate financial support to help many of Africa's home care nurses and palliative caregivers overcome an important challenge -- the challenge of getting to patients with necessary medical supplies.

* Learn more about NHF's efforts and Wheels of Caring at
http://www.nationalhospicefoundation.org/.

* Information about hospice and palliative care is available at
http://www.caringinfo.org/ or by calling NHPCO's HelpLine,
1-800-658-8898 (Spanish-language HelpLine, 1-877-658-8896).

* Resources and information on World Day is available at
http://www.worldday.org/.

Media Contact: Jon Radulovic, Vice President Communications, Ph: 703-837-3139, jradulovic@nhpco.org. http://www.nhpco.org/.

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Source: National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization

CONTACT: Jon Radulovic, Vice President Communications of National
Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, +1-703-837-3139,
jradulovic@nhpco.org

Web site: http://www.nhpco.org/
http://www.nationalhospicefoundation.org/

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