Dr BR Ambedkar Institute Rotary Cancer Hospital (BRAIRCH) of the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) has started courses in pain management and palliative care for patients suffering from life-limiting diseases like cancer.

The two-day course, held twice a year, is aimed at training doctors and nurses to relieve symptoms, primarily pain, of the disease.

“In terminally ill patients, palliative care is an important component. Hence, the need for creating awareness,” said Dr GK Rath, chief of BRAIRCH.

“Pain management is taught a bit at the post-graduate level, but not indepth. These workshops are definitely going to help,” said Dr Roshni Khanna, senior resident at the institute.

The cancer institute registers about 3,000 new cases in its out patient department and in all provides palliative care to about 8,000 patients every year. It also provides a six-bed in-patient palliative care service to those who cannot be managed at home.

“The care isn’t just physical, rather social, economic, psychological and even spiritual,’ said Dr Sushma Bhatnagar, associate professor at BRAIRCH.

“I was on the verge of committing suicide when I came to AIIMS, and now I’m almost 100 per cent pain-free,” said Bhupendar Pratap Singh, 33, a travel agent from Nangloi, who is suffering from lung cancer.