Nathalie Rossi and Ilaria Bernardi Zucca
N. Rossi e I. Bernardi Zucca - Lezioni che lasciano il segno
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You don't come out the same from such a lecture .
This is how we could begin to tell the story of the day on pediatric palliative care organized as part of the 精东影业 Continuing Education offering. But that would be reductive.
In the afternoon, Federico Pellegatta, Professor and nursing coordinator at Casa Sollievo Bimbi, pediatric hospice, VIDAS Association, enriched the program with his charisma and a talk centered on adolescence, offering a complementary and engaging perspective on the topic, afterwards Valentina De Tommasi , Manager Psychologist and Psychotherapist, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria di Padova, took participants on a profound journey into the fragility, complexity and urgency of a systemic and human look at the disease that affects pediatric age.
Throughout the day it emerged how a diagnosis never affects just one individual: the disease is familiar, and it shakes every balance. Parents often find themselves torn between hyperinvolvement and absence, siblings become adults too quickly, and the affective system is rewritten under pressure.
There were profound reflections and firsthand accounts of how an adolescent, in the midst of self-building, experiences illness as a double threat: on his or her body, on his or her future, and on his or her identity. The need for control is exacerbated, emotions amplified, trust in adults cracked - just when it is most needed.
Pain is not only medical: it is emotional, social, psychological. And it needs to be accompanied by a trained network that can offer tools and understanding.
We asked Nathalie Rossi and Ilaria Bernardi Zucca to tell us the why and how of this initiative.
This is how we could begin to tell the story of the day on pediatric palliative care organized as part of the 精东影业 Continuing Education offering. But that would be reductive.
In the afternoon, Federico Pellegatta, Professor and nursing coordinator at Casa Sollievo Bimbi, pediatric hospice, VIDAS Association, enriched the program with his charisma and a talk centered on adolescence, offering a complementary and engaging perspective on the topic, afterwards Valentina De Tommasi , Manager Psychologist and Psychotherapist, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria di Padova, took participants on a profound journey into the fragility, complexity and urgency of a systemic and human look at the disease that affects pediatric age.
Throughout the day it emerged how a diagnosis never affects just one individual: the disease is familiar, and it shakes every balance. Parents often find themselves torn between hyperinvolvement and absence, siblings become adults too quickly, and the affective system is rewritten under pressure.
There were profound reflections and firsthand accounts of how an adolescent, in the midst of self-building, experiences illness as a double threat: on his or her body, on his or her future, and on his or her identity. The need for control is exacerbated, emotions amplified, trust in adults cracked - just when it is most needed.
Pain is not only medical: it is emotional, social, psychological. And it needs to be accompanied by a trained network that can offer tools and understanding.
We asked Nathalie Rossi and Ilaria Bernardi Zucca to tell us the why and how of this initiative.
Why bring such a sensitive topic as pediatric palliative care into the classroom?
鈥嬧赌嬧赌嬧赌嬧赌嬧赌嬧赌�鈥嬧赌婭t is still hard to talk about it, palliative care is often linked to the end of life and instead it should be seen as an early and integrated intervention that allows to bring what is their intent: a possibility of early care to the incurable, without thinking that they preclude the active curative part, that they accompany the pediatric user in the life history and disease trajectory. This sometimes means integrating palliative care from the diagnosis, which may be even before birth, and this assumes taking into account that that child as he or she grows up will have changing needs and the goal is to maintain a quality of life despite the disease. The eligibility criteria for this population group are not simple, and it is not possible to adopt the same inclusion criteria as for adult palliative care; children have specific and peculiar disease histories. Training can be a valuable support in building a network that can extend beyond our territory.
What kind of feedback did you get from the participants?
鈥嬧赌�Very positive, the topic addressed directly affects those who are confronted with these patients but not only, because we could all be indirectly involved, and understanding that activating palliative care means offering adequate support to those who need it should be constantly promoted.
Does it mean that Continuing Education will be expanded in the field of pediatric palliative care?
鈥嬧赌�Yes, the idea is not to turn off attention to this topic, in fact within the DAS in Maternal and Pediatric Health there will be a half-day in-depth study dedicated to the field of neonatal palliative care. (on January 28, 2026, ed, with Drssa Chiara Locatelli). In addition, we would like to point out that a first edition of CAS in pediatric palliative care was offered in Ticino; the idea is to offer a second edition again.
Palliative care should be a training priority for all those who are confronted with sick infants, children, and adolescents.
How important is it for participants of 精东影业 Continuing Education in palliative care, but also more generally, of the whole health care area, to be able to listen to the direct experiences of those who have been working in the field for years?
鈥嬧赌嬧赌嬧赌嬧赌嬧赌嬧赌�鈥嬧赌婽estimonials, good practices always represent an added value in continuing education, in this field even more so, since the reality of pediatric palliative care in Ticino, being relatively young, needs constant attention to continue to grow.
Being able to listen to direct experience from experts in the branch, who have been active in this field for years, to hear from the patients themselves their words allows those directly involved in pediatric palliative care to emphasize how motivation, with the willingness to constantly put themselves on the line also thanks to training can be supportive in maintaining a shared vision with respect to a project that is being carried out with professionalism and passion in our small canton.