Click here for Conference Program Syllabus
Please note: Session topics, speakers, and times are subject to change. We recommend checking the agenda regularly for the most up-to-date information.
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Sunday, June 14 – 10:00 AM
Opening Keynote
What We Talk About When We Talk About Palliative Care, Jared Rubenstein
A review of the current state of palliative care messaging with a look to the future including potential strategies for debiasing, demystifying, and expanding access to palliative care.
Jared Rubenstein is a pediatric palliative care doctor and medical educator. He spent the first 10 years of his career at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital where he served as fellowship program director and co-founder of the pediatric hospice and palliative medicine fellowship. He has recently relocated to Vancouver, BC where is humbled to accept the roles of Division Head of Pediatric Palliative Care at BC Children’s Hospital and medical director of Canuck Place Children’s Hospice. His academic interests include serious illness communication, biases around palliative care, and antiracism training.
He is passionate about helping people talk about difficult things and believes that the use of satire, animation, and humor can facilitate these conversations. His Youtube channel contains original animated videos utilizing these principles and addresses topics including serious illness, mental health, gender equity, and racism in medicine. The videos have been viewed over 200,000 times and are used nationally and internationally as teaching tools.
When he’s not talking about palliative care, he loves traveling and spending time in nature with his wonderful wife and two hilarious kids.
Monday, June 15 – 9:00 AM
Being here is enough: How palliative care teams come together to make a difference, Prof. Philip Larkin
Hospice Palliative care is built on a foundation of team engagement to address the complex needs of patients and their families. In this way, the team provides innovative caring ways to alleviate suffering and navigate the transitions towards end-of-life. The team concept speaks to the vision of Cicely Saunders in advocating for a Total Pain approach to embrace holistic assessment across the life experience. Each team is unique and that individuality can be a strength in determining best clinical and supportive approaches to care.
However, team as a construct is difficult to unpack ? How can a team not only be developed, but nurtured and sustained? What practical considerations are needed to enable work to be both impactful and rewarding for all concerned – patient, family and professional caregiver ?
This presentation will explore the place of a Hospice Palliative Care team as a compassionate community in and of itself. From the standpoint that effective Hospice Palliative Care is framed by small acts of kindness which make a difference in people’s lives, this presentation will explore :
- How we can shape the development of a team,
- The meaning of leadership in the context of Hospice Palliative Care teams,
- Managing change,
- The essential component of self-care for team well-being.
The presentation will conclude with a reflection on the importance of inner resilience as a precursor to excellence in team dynamics.
Tuesday, June 16 – 12:15 PM
Closing Keynote
Celebrating Your Impact: Wholehearted Service, Peter Katz
Juno-Nominated Singer-Songwriter, Keynote Speaker, and Facilitator
Honouring and elevating those who serve — in healthcare, education, public service, long-term care, and other mission-driven fields.
A Juno Award- and Canadian Screen Award-nominated singer-songwriter, Peter Katz is an
expert in helping teams recognize, value, and celebrate their individual and collective impacts.
His interactive keynote concerts feature songs and stories of resiliency, authenticity, and
unexpected joy that guide audiences through challenging transitions and prime them for
transformational change that endures.
Katz’s unique approach sets an industry standard for care and customization. With each event tailored to meet his clients’ needs, he helps leaders and employees at every level create new opportunities for connection and elevation. Audiences leave feeling recognized and empowered, with a deep sense of connection aligning them to a central values-driven vision.
Katz’s perspective on service has been cultivated from nearly two decades as an internationally touring singer-songwriter. After a serious injury and a global pandemic interrupted his plans, he discovered that the skills he had honed through a life on the road — like creating space for deep communication and communal joy — were applicable to people from any industry and any walk of life.
A four-time TEDx fellow, Katz has delivered his highly customized keynote concerts and facilitations to organizations and associations from nearly every industry, including Bell,
Johnson & Johnson, Xerox, Royal Lepage, American Express, Sick Kids Hospital, Sun Life, Mars, Trillium Health, and Royal Bank. His in-person events have been praised as “transformational” and he is recognized as a pioneer in creating highly engaging virtual experiences. Katz has also performed for over 150,000 people virtually from his state-of-the-art broadcast studio, including being invited to address the House of Commons of Canada.
Promotional Video for HPCO by Peter Katz
Gala Awards Dinner
