The Teacher Training Course in Palliative Care, organized by the Laguna Hospital Care Center and the ATLANTES Program of the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS), University of Navarra, has won the ‘Dr. Pozuelo Vicente Escudero' prize. A prize awarded by the Official Association of Physicians in Madrid (ICOMEM), it is bestowed for the best initiative aimed at the humanization of medicine and is worth a total of 5,000 euros.

Dr Antonio Noguera, assistant medical director of the Laguna Hospital Care Center and professor of  Palliative Care for the Nursing Masters program at the University of Navarra, received the award on behalf of the two institutions, during the ceremony hosted at the head offices of the medical association in Madrid.

The second Teacher Training Course in Palliative Care was held in April 2013. The teachers were Dr Antonio Noguera; Dr Carlos Centeno, ATLANTES Program Director and the staff member responsible for Palliative Medicine at the University of Navarra Clinic; Gustavo de Simone, medical oncologist and associate professor of Palliative Care and Quality of Life at the Universidad del Salvador in Buenos Aires, and Ruthmarijke Smeding, Ph.D. in Psychology and a specialist in the development of teaching methodology for palliative care.

Eighteen Years International Experience

The course‘s international experience spans 18 years. Since it was first taught, it has been carried out in over 10 countries and has been taken by participants from more than 20 nationalities. In 2012 the first season of the course in Spanish was developed at the headquarters of the Training Centre of the Laguna Hospital Care Center. The course had the support of the Faculty of Medicine and the ICS at the University of Navarra, and was aimed at doctors with expertise in palliative care. In 2013 a second season was offered.

Laguna Hospital Care Center in Madrid is a center which specializes in hospice care, palliative care needs, and older people who require assistance. It is sponsored by the Vianorte-Laguna Foundation, a non-profit organization created in 2006.

The ATLANTES project intends to support and promote a change of mentality with regard to the end of life in society and in medicine. From a theoretical standpoint, its purpose is to analyze the anthropological and spiritual bases of palliative care. In terms of the strategic approach, though, the project seeks to send an essentially positive message about palliative care to society, through raising awareness among the different stakeholders of its importance, analyzing the international development of this sector, and identifying barriers and opportunities for future professionals.