Sonya Bushell, the Junior Investigator prize winner at SAPC ASM 2025 Cardiff, chose to use their travel bursary to attend the 2026 European Association of Palliative Care Congress in Prague. She has kindly shared her experience of the event.
I attended the 2026 European Association of Palliative Care Congress in Prague. I presented a poster presentation “If it was there from the start, it would be less of an issue”: early advance care planning for those with long-term conditions using the ReSPECT process: a qualitative interview study. A highlight of the conference was hearing Professor Scott Murray, who was awarded the Cicely Saunders Award for his contribution to palliative care. He reflected on his work assessing palliative care needs in the UK and abroad and spoke about the importance of SPICT (Supportive and Palliative Care Indicator Tool). Another highlight was an oral presentation delivered by Elizabeth Deng, reflecting on the different attitudes to life-sustaining treatments in advanced dementia within US and UK healthcare environments. David Wenzel's ethnographic observations of non-invasive respiratory support and end-of-life trajectories reminded us that no intervention is a neutral act, and that a focus on numbers or biochemical targets can prevent us from recognising the humanity of the acutely unwell or dying patient. Above all, the conference provided an opportunity to reflect on the need for care and thoughtfulness in healthcare. The conference encouraged us to imagine a world in which all could receive high-quality evidence-based palliative care. Thank you for the opportunity to attend.