Toby Lowe, Professor of Public Management at Manchester Metropolitan University and Visiting Professor at Centre for Public Impact

Toby’s opening session will give us a clear framework for thinking about “a whole system approach” during the rest of the day.

What do people mean by “the system”? What is the connection between the system and meaningful outcomes in people’s lives? How could things be managed and organised differently to achieve the improvements we want to see?

Toby will draw on practical examples and provide opportunities for interaction. 

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Jo Bowden, Consultant in Palliative Medicine & University of St Andrews Clinical Research Fellow

Stephen Fenning, Consultant in Palliative Medicine

30,000 people are diagnosed with cancer each year in Scotland. A third of these people live less than a year, and their pathways, experiences and outcomes are largely unknown to “the system”. 

In this session Jo Bowden and Stephen Fenning, Palliative Care consultants in Fife, will share the latest learning from the major i-Qual-PPC research study which is tackling this invisibility. 

What do people and their families experience? What do they really value about the system and what needs to change? How might this study inform improvement for people with other conditions? 

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Donald Macaskill, Chief Executive, Scottish Care

Donald has worked for many years in the health and social care sectors across the United Kingdom. A particular professional focus has been issues related to dementia, bereavement, palliative care and individual human rights. He is CEO of Scottish Care, the current Chair of the Bereavement Charter Group for Scotland and a former UK Bereavement Commissioner.

Each day in Scotland tens of thousands of people depend on staff in care homes, care at home and housing support to enable them to live as well as possible until they die. 

In this session Donald will explore the often unseen and undervalued role of social care staff in providing physical, practical, social, emotional and spiritual support to both individuals and their family members.

What can other parts of the system learn from social care? 

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Cormac Russel, Managing Director, Nurture Development

People live and die in communities, and each community impacts on people’s experiences, for better or for worse.  Institutions and healthcare systems often struggle to get their heads round notions of community.  In this session Cormac will help us think about “community” in new ways. How can institutions and professionals truly serve communities? Prepare to be challenged. 

Cormac Russell is a social explorer, an author and a much sought-after speaker. He is the Founding Director of Nurture Development and a member of the Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) Institute, at DePaul University, Chicago.

Over the last 25 years, Cormac’s work has demonstrated an enduring impact in 35 countries around the world. He has trained communities, agencies, NGOs and governments in ABCD and other community-based approaches in Africa, Asia, Australia/Oceania, Europe and North America.

Photo by Georg Lulich

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Clare McGowan,Consultant Clinical Psychologist. Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre and the National Haematopoetic Stem Cell Transplant Service

Palliative care services need to reach and serve the needs of the whole population. In this session Clare will reflect on the psychological care and support which people often need, and the roles played by different health and social care professionals in addressing different levels of complexity. She will then consider how a trauma-informed approach can help to ensure that the system serves people who may find it difficult to engage with services.

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Ariel Dempsey, Physician and postdoctoral fellow in the University of Oxford Faculty of Theology and Religion

Uncertainty is inherent to the practice of palliative care. In this session, Ariel and participants will explore insights from the philosophy of pragmatism and discover practical tools to help you, your colleagues, and your patients not just manage uncertainty, but act in the midst of it and live with it well. 

Ariel will also be running a second additional workshop (limited numbers) designed to explore uncertainty through physical movement and reflection. Participants will be guided through a series of exercises inspired by professional dance practices. These movements are simple, require no prior experience, and can be adapted for all bodies and abilities. The session offers participants a unique opportunity to explore how we experience and respond to uncertainty in clinical practice. It will help participants become more aware of their physical and emotional responses to uncertainty and provide an opportunity to share insights and strategies with one another.

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Chris Harkins, Public Health Programme Manager, Glasgow Centre for Population Health

Artificial Intelligence is all around us. It is changing the world in ways which are scary and ways which are full of potential for good. In this session Chris will provide an introduction to the role of AI in Scotland’s public health and healthcare. He’ll consider AI’s capacity to supplement clinical practice and decision-making, analyse vast amounts of complex population health data at near instantaneous speed, improve healthcare systems efficiency, and personalise patient care. He will also consider how ethical frameworks, good governance, careful evaluation and understanding how the public feels about AI in healthcare, can mitigate some of the risks which this technological revolution brings.

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Are you involved in an interesting project or in an area of work that you would like to share with others working in palliative care in Scotland? Why not present your work in the poster exhibition?

By presenting a poster you can showcase your work throughout the conference to a large and diverse audience. In addition to the exhibition sessions during breaks, a selection of poster authors will be invited to give a short oral presentation to the conference plenary.

Find out more about submitting a poster here: Scottish Partnership for Palliative Care | Call for Posters - Annual Conference 2025

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Book by 30 September to get the Early Bird Discount: Book tickets 

£155 for members (A list of member organisations is available here)

£205 for non members

Student discounts available.

View the Conference Programme here: Conference Programme

Photo by Andy Li on Unsplash

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