Pontifical Academy for Life, Symposium on Religion And Medical Ethics, 11-12 December 2019, Augustinianum Congress Centre, Via Paolo VI, Rome

This special symposium examines the role that religion plays in providing holistic care in the context of medical ethics. By focusing on the intersection of belief-based and evidence-based approaches to care, speakers and participants will have the opportunity to highlight and explore the benefits of interdisciplinary and interfaith approaches to treating the body, mind and soul.

Academic partner for the event: The BMJ.

The symposium will focus on two areas of healthcare:

• Palliative Care
• The Mental Health of the Elderly

Sessions include a focus on:

• Christian, Islamic and medical perspectives on ethics and palliative care
• Safeguarding the mental health of elderly patients receiving palliative care
• Interfaith approaches to promoting the role of spirituality in palliative care
• Perspectives on pediatric palliative care
• The mental health and wellbeing of older people: spiritual opportunities and challenges
• Maintaining the bridge of love between people with dementia and their carers
• Mental health and the elderly: the intersection of spirituality, caregiving and medicine
• Suicide and life-threatening behavior among the elderly