Virtual hospice
===============

* Michael OReilly

Last fall, Ottawa announced a $100 000 grant toward development of a Web-based virtual hospice. The Canadian Virtual Hospice Project, now under way, is supposed to connect health care providers and patients with the palliative care services they need.

![Figure1](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/166/9/1199.2/F1.medium.gif)

[Figure1](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/166/9/1199.2/F1)

Figure. 

Anita Stern of McMaster University, one of the project's principals, says the online needs of the palliative care community are currently being determined, but a pilot Web site should be online early next year.

While work on that project continues, other palliative care sites are already up and running. The Canadian Palliative Care Association ([www.cpca.net](http://www.cpca.net)) maintains a comprehensive site with online resources for physicians, while the University of Ottawa's Institute of Palliative Care offers an online forum rich with services for both the professional and the patient (**growthhouse.net /~ottawa**). It includes discussion groups, chat services and mailing lists.

Similarly, the Edmonton Palliative Care Program ([www.palliative.org](http://www.palliative.org)) offers an extensive site that includes clinical information, cancer material, pain-assessment tools such as the Edmonton Staging System for Cancer Pain, and links to related resources.

Finally, for those wanting to enhance their palliative care skills, Grant MacEwan Community College in Edmonton has developed a distance education program ([www.hcs.gmcc.ab.ca/palliative](http://www.hcs.gmcc.ab.ca/palliative)) delivered over the Net. Its Palliative Care Post Diploma Certificate Program is aimed at professionals and covers the skills needed to provide quality care for the terminally ill in either an institutional or home-care setting.

Physicians may wish to inform patients or their families of the college's Compassionate Care for the Terminally Ill Certificate Program (**www .gmcc .ab .ca /users/hcs/pcare/compcare.htm**), which comprises 4 noncredit courses that provide knowledge and skills for people caring for terminally ill family members or friends. — *Michael OReilly*, [mike@oreilly.net](http://mike@oreilly.net)