Palliative care takes root in Botswana- Dr Mbangtang

Speaking on Tuesday, Mbangtang also said palliative care dates back to 1995 when CHBC was established in response to the HIV/AIDS scourge that had a stranglehold on the country.He said: "In 2008 they came up with the establishment of a Palliative Care Advisory Committee (PCAC) to guide the implementation of palliative care services in the country but that did not work for it was then put on hold," he said.

He further said in 2011 there was a re-activation of the committee that had a taskforce to help come up with strategies that would benefit people."Even though that was the case in 2011, Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital established the first dedicated Cancer Palliative Care Clinic in the nation so that it can benefit people in the northern part of the country," he said.Furthermore, he said though there are short-comings, the clinic is functioning on a part-time basis because most of the doctors are working part-time since they have hospital duties to attend to.