University Hospital of Cologne
Examples of Previous Relevant Collective Experience
· Psychosocial support: collaborative (Aachen, Bonn, Cologne) project on coordination and case management in in-patient and out-patient care, with specific post created in Cologne (just awarded research project by German Cancer Aid), education courses of palliative care coordinators and case managers in Bonn.
· Symptoms in end-of-life care: 8 year project of HOPE documentation, a collaborative project between palliative care units, GPs, oncologists, nursing homes throughout Germany; the largest palliative care database available, with possibility of adding new modules assessing various aspects of the EU project.
· End-of-life decision making: recently awarded collaborative research project funded by DFG (PAK153), run by the Aachen, Bonn, Cologne and Göttingen university departments of palliative medicine.
· Development of structures for better end-of-life care in Germany, involved in political development of a new health care law making “home specialized palliative care” mandatory in the system (as of April 1st 2007).