The celebrations began with a welcome dinner that brought together more than 40 leading local and national palliative care experts, creating a valuable forum for exchanging ideas on evolving models of care, shared challenges, and innovations in service delivery. It also gave our guests from Harvard Medical School an opportunity to understand the cultural nuances in Mumbai while practicing palliative care.

As Chief Guest, Dr. Farokh E. Udwadia – renowned physician, author, Padma Bhushan awardee, and long-time advocate for palliative care – shared reflections on the changing practice of medicine and the importance of preserving humanity and compassion in clinical care.

Keynote speakers Dr. James Tulsky and Dr. Mark Stoltenberg presented the history of palliative care in North America and lessons that could be learnt within the Indian context. They also spoke about global best practices in symptom management, psychosocial care, and patient-centred communication.

This was followed by a thought-provoking panel discussion was moderated by Dr. Jayita Deodhar, Head of the Department of Palliative Medicine at Tata Memorial Hospital. Panelists included Ms. Harmala Gupta, Founder of CanSupport; Dr. Rajam Iyer, pulmonologist and palliative care physician; and Ms. Devaunshi Mehta, Chief Psychologist at PALCARE. The discussion explored India’s growing need for palliative and mental health services and examined sustainable approaches to meeting these challenges.

The conference was generously supported by The Mahindra Foundation and The Reliance Foundation.

During their stay, Dr. Tulsky and Dr. Stoltenberg also visited several leading institutions, including Tata Memorial Centre, Shanti Avedna Sadan—India’s first hospice—and Sukoon Nilaya, a specialised palliative and respite care centre, with the goal of understanding how palliative care is practiced and with emphasis on furthering and enhancing how palliative care is practiced. Additionally, they conducted a training session for counsellors focused on the role of emotions and trust in handling communication with patients and families.

The visit concluded with both guests expressing their deep appreciation for PALCARE’s work and their commitment to continued collaboration with India’s palliative care community.

The anniversary conference served not only as a celebration of PALCARE’s first ten years but also as an opportunity to strengthen partnerships, share knowledge, and reaffirm a collective commitment to advancing compassionate, patient-centred care in India.