Major progress in palliative care and access to medicines in Armenia

An article by Stephen R. Connor and Anahit Papikyan

The Armenian Ministry of Health has approved the first purchase of oral morphine, and has removed a number of barriers limiting access to opioid medications in the country. While these changes appear to have happened suddenly, they are in fact the result of a very long and steady advocacy effort.
In 2010 the Open Society Institute Assistance Foundation Armenia (OSIAFA) began an effort to help local champions develop palliative care in the country. As part of their public health programme a palliative care project co-funded by the OSF New York International Palliative Care Initiative (IPCI) was started. read more