First facilities for palliative paediatric care in Italy: project for the “G. Gaslini“ Institute in Genoa

Abstract

The quality of the Italian National Health Scheme (S.S.N.) is measured according to the efficiency of community services and their capacity of complying with the new emerging needs of citizens. Among these, hospices can be considered necessary facilities of reference in the case of “palliative care”. Many hospices are reserved for adults in Italy, whereas only one facility (located in Padua) complies with the specific and diverse needs of children. The opportunity has presently arisen to build a second paediatric hospice in Genoa, thanks to collaboration between the Gaslini Institute and the Maruzza Lefebvre D’Ovidio Onlus Foundation; this entails a plan for the renovation of part of an existing pavilion belonging to the Gaslini Institute, which is the result of research and procedures that have fostered the participation of experts possessing articulated skills in the said field.