The BNPCC Hub

[From PCQ]

Nominations are now open for the 2026 Palliative Care Queensland Awards.

These awards recognise the individuals, teams, volunteers, researchers and organisations making an outstanding contribution to palliative and end-of-life care across Queensland.

We know there are remarkable people and programs making a difference every day. Now is the time to celebrate their achievements and ensure their contributions are recognised.

As part of our newly aligned awards program with Palliative Care Australia, many Queensland award winners will also have the opportunity to be considered for national recognition through the 2027 Palliative Care Australia Awards.

2026 Award Categories

• Excellence in Building Compassion in the Community
• Excellence in an Aged Care Setting
• Emerging Leader
• Emerging Researcher
• Innovation in Palliative Care
• Volunteering Hero
• Exemplary Care for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Peoples
• Outstanding Work by a Team in Delivering Palliative Care
• Outstanding Achievement by an Individual in Palliative Care
• Lifetime Achievement

Key Dates

• Nominations Open: 24 August 2026
• Nominations Close: 21 September 2026
• Finalists Notified: Early October 2026
• Winners Announced: 30 October 2026 at the Palliative Care Queensland Annual Summit & Award
• 2027 Qld Finalists submitted to the Palliative Care Australia Awards

Join Us at the Annual Summit & Awards

The awards presentation will be held as part of the 2026 Palliative Care Queensland Annual Summit & Awards on Friday 30 October 2026 at Easts Leagues Club, Brisbane.

Guided by the theme "What Matters Most in Palliative Care: Dignity, Identity and Choice at the End of Life," the Summit will bring together healthcare professionals, aged care leaders, researchers, volunteers, community organisations and policymakers to explore the future of palliative care and celebrate excellence across our sector

We Need Your Help

Please consider nominating a colleague, volunteer, team or organisation whose work deserves recognition.

We would also appreciate you sharing this opportunity throughout your networks, services, organisations and communities to help us identify and celebrate the outstanding work happening across Queensland.

Submit an Award Nomination Here

View Award Guidelines Here

Register for Summit Here

Thank you for the vital role you play in supporting Queenslanders facing life-limiting illness, and for helping us celebrate excellence across our sector.

[From PCQ]

What Matters Most as We Age? Navigating Frailty, Dementia and Quality of Life

As we age, conversations about frailty, dementia and future care can feel difficult, but they can also help us better understand what matters most and support people to live with dignity, comfort and connection.

Join Dr Aneesha Singh, Geriatrician and General Medicine Consultant with the Community Palliative Care Service, Metro North HHS, and Kristy Clapp, Clinical Nurse Consultant from Dementia Australia for a compassionate and practical discussion about navigating the changes that can come with ageing.

Dr Singh will share clinical insights into frailty, ageing, and the lessons learned through developing and delivering the Comfort Care Bundle, highlighting lessons that can strengthen person-centered care. Kristy will bring a lived-experience, advocacy, education and support perspective, exploring how individuals living with dementia and the families and carers supporting them can be better understood, included and supported.

This webinar will explore:

• Understanding frailty and dementia
• Supporting independence, wellbeing and quality of life
• Planning ahead and having important conversations
• Lessons from the Comfort Care Bundle
• Listening to and learning from lived experience
• Supporting carers and families throughout the journey
• Connecting with community supports and services

Designed for healthcare and aged care professionals, carers, families and anyone interested in supporting older people, this session will offer practical insights grounded in care, compassion and respect for individual choices.

DATE: WEDNESDAY 30 September 2026

TIME: 12:00 PM – 01:00 PM (AEST)

REGISTER: https://events.humanitix.com/pcqwebinarseptember2026

FREE for PCQ members, PCQ Volunteers, QAS Paramedics

$10 General Admission

$8 Concession Card Holders

These webinars are sponsored by Queensland Health, and supported by Queensland Ambulance Services

Any questions please email hello@palliativecareqld.org.au or call 07 3842 3242.

APHC27OPCC Registration Now Open

Healthcare professionals, researchers, policymakers and advocates from across the Asia Pacific region are invited to attend the Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Conference 2027 (APHC27OPCC), to be held in Adelaide, South Australia. The conference brings together regional leaders to share knowledge, strengthen partnerships and advance equitable, compassionate palliative care.

Delivered through a partnership between Palliative Care Australia (PCA) and the Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network (APHN), APHC27OPCC will focus on key themes including innovation in care, workforce sustainability, cultural safety, community-led approaches and research translation. The event aims to foster collaboration across diverse health systems and communities while supporting improved outcomes for people living with serious illness and their families. Registration is now open, with early bird pricing available until 30 November 2026.

Learn more and register: APHC27OPCC Conference Website

[From Queensland Health]

Expressions of interest are now open for membership of the Queensland Memory Clinic Project (MIND Hub) Advisory Group.

The MIND Hub Project, led by Dr Chrys Pulle, Kasey Owen and the Healthcare Improvement Unit at Clinical Excellence Queensland, is developing an innovative and sustainable statewide framework for Memory Clinics across Queensland. The framework will support high-quality memory assessment and diagnostic services for Queenslanders living with cognitive impairment and dementia.

The project is seeking Advisory Group members from a broad range of disciplines, services and regions to help ensure the framework is clinically relevant, practical, consumer-centred and sustainable. Applications are particularly encouraged from individuals with experience in:

• Memory clinics
• Geriatric medicine
• Older persons psychiatry
• Nursing
• Allied health
• Primary care
• Service planning
• Consumer and lived experience perspectives

Advisory Group members will have the opportunity to contribute to this important statewide initiative through consultation activities, document review and participation in virtual meetings held every two months until the project's conclusion in June 2027.

Further information is available in the flyer. Expressions of interest can be submitted via the Expression of Interest Form.

Expressions of interest close at 5.00 pm on Thursday, 2 October 2026.

Organisations and stakeholders are encouraged to share this opportunity with colleagues and networks who may be interested in contributing to this important work.

For further information, contact:

• Kasey.Owen@health.qld.gov.au
• qlddementiaageingfrailtynetwork@health.qld.gov.au

[From NDIS]

Share your feedback on the new NDIS laws

The NDIS want to understand what information people find most useful about changes to the NDIS.

You can share your feedback about the topics you want to know more about. You can also tell them how you like to receive information.

Your feedback will help them improve their information and resources. You can find out more and share your feedback on the NDIS Engage website.

Have your say on rules for the new way of planning

The Australian Government is creating the rules for the new way of planning. The rules will explain how the new NDIS support needs assessments and funding will work.

The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing (DHDA) want feedback from people with disability, their families and carers about the new rules.

They want to know:

• if the proposed rules are clear and easy to understand
• what information or support would help you understand the changes.

Consultation is open now and closes on 14 October 2026. Visit the DHDA website to find out more.

[From the NDIS]

The NDIS has made changes to how plan reassessments can be requested. These changes are part of the new NDIS laws.

A plan reassessment is the process of developing a new NDIS plan. It is only undertaken when there has been a significant and ongoing change in a participant's support needs.

Under the new arrangements, only the following people can request a plan reassessment:

• The participant
• The participant's nominee
• A child representative

A plan reassessment request must now be submitted using the designated NDIS form, which can be downloaded from the NDIS website.

The completed form must explain what has changed and why a reassessment is required. Supporting evidence should also be provided and may need to come from a GP or other health professional.

Once the NDIS has received all the required information, a decision will be made within 90 days.

If changes to a participant's support needs are urgent, minor, or short term, a plan variation may be requested instead.

An NDIS contact can help participants determine the type of plan change required and advise on the evidence that should be included.

More information about plan reassessments, including access to the request form, is available on the NDIS website.

[From Dementia Doulas Australia]

Introducing The Wildflower Village

The Wildflower Village is a place where families can:

• discover dementia-inclusive businesses, services and organisations
• connect with trusted supports across Australia
• access resources, education and practical information
• join online events and community conversations
• feel part of a community that understands the dementia journey.

More than a directory, The Wildflower Village is exactly that, a village. A place where families can find strength in every season and where no one has to navigate dementia alone. As the Village grows, so too will the opportunities for connection, learning and support.

The Wildflower Village is free for families impacted by dementia to join.

JOIN THE VILLAGE COMMUNITY

[From caring@home]

The caring@home team is delighted to share that it has secured Australian Government funding for another four years under a National Palliative Care Project Grant.

Delivered by a consortium led by the Brisbane South Palliative Care Collaborative, caring@home will continue to support quality and timely home-based end-of-life care by:

• developing practical resources for clinical services, health professionals and families and carers
• providing associated education for health professionals.

Over the next four years, they will continue to work with key stakeholders, including health professionals, to undertake activities that align with the goals of the National Palliative Care Strategy, including:

• Resources for community service providers
  • Develop new and updated resources to help providers deliver high-quality, timely end-of-life care in the community
• Resources for health professionals
  • Deliver online and face-to-face education to specialist palliative care and primary care workforces
  • Develop practical resources to support the primary care workforce
  • Develop new apps and update existing apps
• Resources for families and carers
  • Develop new and updated resources including new culturally appropriate resources for First Nations families
• Evaluation
  • Engage an external evaluator to assess the effectiveness of project activities