The story so far

Since 2009, the Louis Dundas Centre at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) has made a meaningful and unique contribution to children’s palliative care in the UK and worldwide.

This has been achieved in the following ways:

An exceptional academic team have been in place for a number of years.

The team was initially led by the True Colours Chair in Palliative Care for Children and Young People Professor Myra Bluebond-Langner, who retired in December 2021.

In 2023, Professor Ulrika Kreicbergs joined the Centre as the Louis Dundas Chair in Palliative Care for Children and Young People. She continues to build on the legacy and drive forward this important research.

Several major research studies are underway, enabling the team to:

• Contribute to national and international policy development and guidelines on palliative care.
• Share knowledge, nationally and internationally, through publications, seminars, presentations, training and teaching sessions.

The Louis Dundas Centre has also helped to strengthen the clinical Palliative Care team at GOSH and increase research capacity by funding additional staff, including:

• A clinical nurse specialist, who has helped to increase the number of outreach visits to patients and their families.
• A psychosocial team, including a clinical psychologist and a social worker, who provide support to sick children, their families and the staff who care for them.

As a result, the centre has not only helped to improve the quality of care provided by the multi-disciplinary team at GOSH. It has also enabled a greater number of referrals to be made, and children and families from a wider catchment area to be supported. In 2013 there were:

• 220 referrals made to the Louis Dundas Centre team (an increase of nearly 50 per cent since the centre was established).
• More than 1,200 children on the clinical team's caseload.
• More than 2,500 visits made to children and families.

Thank you. We look forward to continuing to update you on our progress.