From 26 to 28 April 2026, Hong Kong became a gathering place for clinicians committed to improving care for seriously ill children and their families. The EPEC-Paediatrics Hong Kong 2026 programme, held in collaboration with the Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network (APHN), the Hong Kong Society of Children’s Palliative Care and the Children’s Cancer Foundation, brought together 46 participants for the two-day Train-the-Trainer (TtT) course, followed by a 20-participant Professional Development Workshop (PDW).
Participants came from Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia and Singapore. They were taught by a faculty of 12: six international experts and six local leaders in paediatric care.
Supporting educators across the region
Paediatric palliative care is still developing in many parts of Asia Pacific, and trained educators are one of the most powerful ways to grow it. At APHN, we were proud to provide scholarships for two TtT participants, one from Cambodia and one from Indonesia. Our hope is that they bring what they learned back to their own teams and communities.
Train-the-Trainer: learning how to teach
The TtT course opened with a clear message to participants: you are here to learn how to teach paediatric palliative care.
Day 1 began with the foundations. Breakout sessions covered what paediatric palliative care is and why it matters, self-care for professionals, and multimodal analgesia. Lectures introduced the EPEC TtT approach and explored teaching “Attitude, Knowledge and Skill” through interactive lectures and case studies. Clinical content included procedural pain management strategies, ethical issues in paediatric palliative care, and neuropathic pain management and adjuvant analgesia.
Day 2 shifted toward practice. Participants took part in reflections and teach-back, and practised teaching EPEC-Paediatrics through role play in both face-to-face and Zoom settings. Sessions addressed caring for the imminently dying child and their family, managing respiratory symptoms, and team collaboration and effectiveness. Communication was a strong thread. Participants practised the “SPIKES” and “NURSE” frameworks for sharing difficult news and responding to emotions, and joined a breakout session on communication and planning. The course closed with planning their next educational sessions, a final teach-back, next steps and farewells.
Professional Development Workshop: sharpening teaching skills
On 28 April, the PDW gave 20 participants a focused, hands-on look at three core teaching methods: interactive lectures, case-based teaching and role play. Each was introduced and then put into practice in small-group breakouts. In the interactive lecture session, participants practised the “One Thing” approach, built around a “Hook”, “Attitude”, “Knowledge” and “Skill”. The workshop ended with a wrap-up and next steps.
Our faculty
International faculty
- Dr Stefan J. Friedrichsdorf, UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals, USA
- Dr Ross Drake, Queensland Children’s Hospital, Australia
- Dr Gemma Aburn, University of Auckland, New Zealand
- Dr Chong Lee Ai, University Malaya Medical Centre, Malaysia
- Dr Chong Poh Heng, HCA Hospice Care, Singapore
- Dr Kazuto Ueda, Nagoya University Hospital, Japan
Local faculty
- Dr Mandy Man and Ms Mara Lo, Hong Kong Children’s Hospital
- Ms Ivy Tam and Ms Molin Lin, Children’s Cancer Foundation
- Dr Victoria Tao, The Duchess of Kent Children’s Hospital at Sandy Bay
- Dr Rever Li, Tuen Mun Hospital
We are grateful to every faculty member for sharing their time and expertise, and to every participant for their commitment to children and families facing serious illness. Our thanks also go to our collaborators, The Hong Kong Society of Children’s Palliative Care and the Children’s Cancer Foundation, whose partnership made this programme possible.
Looking ahead
Every trainer equipped at EPEC-Paediatrics can reach many more clinicians, and through them, many more children and families. We look forward to seeing how this new network of educators carries the learning forward across Asia Pacific.
Written by Trudy Giam (APHN Executive)
