Hospice NZ asks politicians for palliative care commitment

First, Hospice New Zealand is calling for full implementation of a National Model for Integrated Adult Palliative Care, to involve the hospice sector in planning, costing and decision-making, with new funding first directed to service gaps and implementation reflected in the New Zealand Health Plan.

Pay parity should be fully funded so hospices can pay their clinical workforce the same as those in equivalent Health New Zealand roles, Hospice NZ stated.

The organisation says a National Palliative Care Workforce Strategy should be developed and funded, specialist clinicians attracted and retained – particularly in rural areas – and palliative care education strengthened.

Hospice NZ has also called on the next Government to ensure children and young people can access the palliative care they need, with the provision of care services being equitable, accessible and sustainable.

Equitable access to palliative care should made a national priority, the organisation added, with steps taken to ensure communities with the greatest gaps can be prioritised in future funding.

Hospice New Zealand said it sent a document titled “Dying Well: A Palliative Care Policy for Aotearoa” to political party leaders and party health spokespeople and has “asked them to tell us whether they will commit to these . . . actions”.

“We will publish their responses here as they are received.”

Hospice NZ chief executive Wayne Naylor met with Health New Zealand’s executive leadership team to share an overview of hospice care across Aotearoa and discuss how organisations can work together to strengthen palliative care.

Mr Naylor began by acknowledging the important progress made this year and thanking Health NZ for the 2026/27 funding uplift, including a targeted $8.8 million increase for hospice services.

A central message to Health NZ leaders was simple: helping people to die well is an essential part of a good health system, and hospice care is core health system infrastructure

Mr Naylor also reinforced an important reality about how hospice care is funded, in that money raised by communities is not simply paying for the “extras”. It helps fund the core services people rely on, including the clinical teams providing specialist palliative care.

FULL STORY

Advocacy (Hospice NZ)

Hospice and Health NZ: building a stronger partnership for palliative care (Hospice NZ)