Compassion in Action: The Role of Youth in Palliative Care - Learning from Kerala, India

The Students in Palliative Care initiative at the Institute of Palliative Medicine demonstrates how youth can become the driving force of community-based care. Young people bring energy, openness, and a willingness to act, transforming palliative care from a service delivered by professionals into a compassionate community movement. Through structured pathways such as orientation sessions, short experiential trainings, intensive caregiver courses, and long-term psychosocial support programs, students are not only equipped with skills but also nurtured in empathy and social responsibility. Their role extends beyond caregiving tasks—they listen, connect, restore dignity, and often help patients rediscover purpose through youth engagement. Importantly, youth act as connectors and influencers, inspiring wider community participation and ensuring that care reaches patients during the majority of time they spend outside formal institutions. By positioning young people at the centre rather than the margins, the initiative shows that when youth engage, care multiplies, communities strengthen, and the experience of illness, dying, and grief becomes more humane and supported.

Dr Saif Mohammed - Consultant, World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre, https://instituteofpalliativemedicine.org  

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