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ObjectivesFaith-based organisations (FBOs) in India provide health services particularly to marginalised communities. We studied their preparedness and delivery of palliative care during COVID-19 as part of a mixed-method study. We present the results of an online questionnaire.MethodsAll FBOs providing palliative care in India were invited to complete an online questionnaire. Descriptive analysis was undertaken.ResultsResponse rate was 46/64 (72%); 44 provided palliative care; 30/44 (68%) were in rural or semiurban areas with 10–2700 beds. Fifty-two per cent (23/44) had dedicated palliative care teams and 30/44 (68%) provided it as part of general services; 17/44 (39%) provided both. 29/44 (66%) provided palliative care for cancer patients; 17/44 (34%) reported that this was more than half their workload.The pandemic led to reduced clinical work: hospital 36/44 (82%) and community 40/44 (91%); with reduction in hospital income for 41/44 (93%). 18/44 (44%) were designated government COVID-19 centres; 11/40 (32%) had admitted between 1 and 2230 COVID-19 patients.COVID-19 brought challenges: 14/44 (32%) lacked personal protective equipment; 21/44 (48%) had reduced hospital supplies and 19/44 (43%) lacked key medications including morphine. 29/44 (66%) reported reduction in palliative care work; 7/44 (16%) had stopped altogether. Twenty-three per cent (10/44) reported redeployment of palliative care teams to other work. For those providing, palliative care 32/37 (86%) was principally for non-COVID patients; 13/37 (35%) cared for COVID-19 patients. Service adaptations included: teleconsultation, triaged home visits, medication delivery at home and food supply.ConclusionsFBOs in India providing palliative care had continued to do so despite multiple challenges. Services were adapted to enable ongoing patient care. Further research is exploring the effects of COVID-19 in greater depth.

ObjectivesThe COVID-19 pandemic challenged palliative care (PC) services globally. We studied the ways healthcare professionals (HCPs) working in faith-based hospitals (FBHs) experienced and adapted care through the pandemic, and how this impacted patients with PC needs.MethodsIn-depth interviews were conducted with HCPs from FBHs serving rural and urban population across India. Thematic analysis was conducted.ResultsA total of 10 in-depth interviews were conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, first wave (4), second wave (4) and between them (2). HCPs described fear and stigma in the community early in the pandemic. Migrant workers struggled, many local health services closed and cancer care was severely affected. Access and availability of healthcare services was better during the second wave. During both waves, FBHs provided care for non-COVID patients, earning community appreciation. For HCPs, the first wave entailed preparation and training; the second wave was frightening with scarcity of hospital beds, oxygen and many deaths. Eight of the 10 FBHs provided COVID-19 care. PC teams adapted services providing teleconsultations, triaging home visits, delivering medications, food at home, doing online teaching for adolescents, raising funds. Strengths of FBHs were dedicated teamwork, staff care, quick response and adaptations to community needs, building on established community relationship.ConclusionFBHs remained open and continued providing consistent, good quality, person-centred care during the pandemic. Challenges were overcome innovatively using novel approaches, often achieving good outcomes despite limited resources. By defining and redefining quality using a PC lens, FBHs strengthened patient care services.

The secret to winning is to be different and daring. If you aren't winning 'charity of the year' partnerships, then you have nothing to lose by trying something new. Don't look at what's been done before; invent original ways to nail those all-important staffvotes and panel interviews. Throw everything you have at it and make sure you inspire your entire team along the way. Just think of the end of a football match when a manager puts the whole team into attack to score a goal.

It is a story of colossal and haphazard habitat loss, of human population expansion, economic booms, palm oil plantations, mining, logging, expanding train networks, electrocution from low power lines and an illegal trade in wild elephant babies to supply tourist camps. Here at Elephant Family our focus is the Asian elephant, so we see their demise on a daily basis. While the causes vary, the result is the same - the steady annihilation of a species. This is why Elephant Family is mapping out a vast network of \"elephant corridors\" to reconnect the forest fragments and reassert migratory routes without the risk of human conflict or railways and motorways to mow them down. This big-picture solution is what is required for the Asian elephant, just as the Giants Club is doing for its African cousins.

The African and Asian elephant will link trunks to host Elephants Forever, a magnificent art event on October 27 in New York.

Charity statutory funding, under present conditions, serves to soothe and prolong the symptoms of meagre government investment. Bliss is frequently concerned that the NHS is using us as a back pocket.

Of the many millions of books written over the course of history, only a relatively small percentage have been deemed classics. Authors of classic literature are those who have penned works definitive of a style, movement, era, or ethos. Their works are timeless in message and scope. This essential volume chronicles the lives of many literary luminaries--including Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Ernest Hemingway, and Virginia Woolf--examining their early histories, journeys to success, and greatest tomes.