Firstly, thank you for your interest in becoming a Host Centre. We have tried to provide you with some basic information about what may be expected of you and how a stage/placement can be arranged. Please read the information in Section one concerning the terms of reference and the Applicant.

How to be a Host Centre

Given the goal and objectives of this project, it is important that a Host Centre is a recognised and well established centre of palliative care expertise in your country, and that it is recognised by the national association. We emphasise this point because palliative care is developing at a different rate throughout Europe and there is no one specific standard that can be applied to all centres across Europe. However, there are a few questions below to consider:

• What type of experience can you offer? (Clinical and/or Education and/or Research)
• Do you have the resources to offer a placement without causing a burden on the service or decreasing quality of care?
• Can you identify a Mentor (resource person)?
• Can you provide a resource pack of information?

Provide your profile (a description of your service and the learning opportunities you offer).

• Your profile will be stored and accessible for viewing through the EAPC website.

• Please try to be as accurate as possible about your service and the learning opportunities for the Applicant.

Type of placement you can offer

• An “ observation stage” which is usually for a period of one-two weeks maximum or

• a “clinical practice stage”  which can be considerably longer, up to say six weeks

• In order to work in clinical practice, the Applicant might need to register within the national professional registration system of your country. Registration can take some time to organise and you may be asked to help with this.

• It is important that you make it clear to the Applicant which type of experience you can provide.

Learning objectives

• Clear, achievable and measurable learning objectives are necessary to make the placement fruitful  
• Three-four clearly specified objectives should be submitted in advance
• These objectives are not only achievable but linked to the Applicant’s practice
• We cannot overemphasise the importance of learning objectives being made available at the outset of the stage/placement.

Budget

• The costs for a placement are entirely the responsibility of the Applicant
• It is important that you are realistic about the costs of a visit to your country and you may need to give advice regarding budgeting and accommodation
• It is also very important to identify if there are costs or charges expected of the applicant for visiting your centre
• This should all be clarified in writing before the contract is agreed.

Contract/Agreement

There must be a signed contract/agreement between you and the Applicant. The contract is there to ensure that the best possible opportunities are available to meet the respective needs of both the Applicant and the Host Centre. As the requirements may vary between European countries, we strongly advise that you seek legal advice on matters which may be important to note for an applicant in your own country. These may include, for example, personal liability insurance, health insurance and accident liability. However, we suggest that the contract should include the following points:

• Any legal or professional issues (e.g. Confidentiality clauses)
• Evidence of having received the agreement of the Applicant’s employer
• The length and type of stage
• Issues of professional liability
• Total costs involved
• A clear understanding of responsibility regarding insurance cover in place for the duration of the stage/placement to cover health, luggage and cancellation of stage/placement
• The need for a valid passport/national identity document and a Visa if required
• Applicant must agree to hold in strict confidence all patient information which may come into her/his possession as a result of the stage/placement
• Mutual agreement by all parties on the terms of reference of the contract/agreement.

More detailed recommendations are available in the document, Recommended Terms of Stage/placement.

Mentorship

A key role of the Host Centre is to identify a clinical mentor to support the Applicant. The Mentor should be an experienced health care professional working in your palliative care service. The Mentor plays a key role in facilitating and encouraging the applicant to achieve maximum learning from practice, according to their learning objectives.

How to identify your mentor?

The mentor should demonstrate the following qualities:

• Good communication and interpersonal skills
• Experience of having worked in the area for a sufficient period to be familiar with the area
• Clinical proficiency and wide-ranging clinical experience in the practice speciality
• A suitable role model as acknowledged by the care team
• Responsibility for patient care and be capable of teaching patient-centred care
• Demonstrable, up-to-date clinical knowledge
• An interest and commitment to the role.

The clinical mentor may make the first point of contact once a stage/placement application has been received by you, or you may appoint them later. The respective roles and responsibilities as regards the clinical mentorship for the stage/placement should be clearly outlined in the contract/agreement. However, you should identify someone who has a track record in:

• Planning and implementing learning activities in the clinical setting
• Using reflection as a teaching/learning strategy
• Giving feedback
• Assessing performance
• Documenting and reporting progress (Although it is expected that the majority of the applicants will be working at a senior level in palliative care, it is possible that they may be choosing a “stage” as part of an academic course or programme of study. If so, the roles and responsibilities may differ and therefore it should be clarified in advance if the applicant is undertaking higher training)

Language Issues

There is an implicit understanding that the Applicant should have at least a working knowledge of the language of the country they wish to visit. It may well be possible to identify a Mentor who is able to converse in the language but the learning possible will most definitely be dependent on the ability of the Applicant to interact with colleagues. It may be possible for the Applicant to undertake a language course either before or during the stage/placement, depending on how long it will be. You should be comfortable that the Applicant is at least competent to hold a conversation and ask questions in the Host Centre language, albeit it for socialising! We therefore recommend at least one phone call (given that it is not always easy for non-native speakers to use the phone) and a written contact (email) prior to the stage/placement to estimate the Applicant’s ability in your language. Of course, weak language ability does not preclude your taking an Applicant for a stage/placement but it may have implications for you in terms of time and resources.

Remember that a stage/placement should not impact on the quality of your clinical service nor add unnecessary burden to your staff.

So what now?

If you are interested in registering as a Host Centre, please download here the “Host Centre” form. Please complete this and sent it to . Note that this information about your service will be available on the EAPC website for people interested in a stage/placement, so be sure that it is as accurate as possible. You will receive a return e-mail acknowledging your information has been lodged and that you will be contacted in the future for an update.

The Applicant’s form is also available at this site and they will forward their completed form direct to you (not to the EAPC). This means that each contact will be between you and the Applicant and not to the EAPC Head Office. The Head Office are responsible to ensure that the information supplied is as accurate as possible at the time of publication and will act as a filter for questions and issues arising about the web page through the EPSO team. It does not intervene directly in a “stage” placement or any issues arising from it.

We hope that you will consider registering as a Host Centre and we look forward to hearing from you in due course.

Sincerely,

The EPSO team