Across Europe, children are living with severe, complex, or rare chronic illnesses that significantly affect their quality of life and, in many cases, may shorten life expectancy.

Pediatric palliative care is not limited to end-of-life care alone — it is an active, holistic approach that can be provided from the time of diagnosis, regardless of the type or stage of illness, and alongside disease-specific or life-prolonging treatment.

The goal of pediatric palliative care is to prevent and relieve suffering through effective management of pain and other distressing symptoms, while also providing psychological, social, and spiritual support to children and their families.

Pediatric palliative care services in Europe are currently characterized by significant inequalities in access, and the services are often introduced too late or are insufficiently integrated into general pediatric healthcare. As a result, children, their families, and other caregivers frequently experience inconsistencies in care.

Hope4Kids addresses these challenges through a comprehensive and coordinated approach. The project’s main outputs include mapping pediatric palliative care across Europe, developing standardized and evidence-based clinical pathways in pediatric palliative care, implementing and evaluating four pilot programs at more than 17 research sites, and developing educational and training materials for healthcare professionals, parents, other caregivers, and teachers.

Hope4Kids will also establish a European network of professionals in the field of pediatric palliative care and collaborate with other European initiatives.

The Hope4Kids project runs for four years and is coordinated by Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology in the Netherlands. The project is based on collaboration among more than 50 partners and over 70 institutions from 23 European countries. Through this collaboration, Hope4Kids aims to address inequalities in access to pediatric palliative care, the quality of services, and the integration of such care into healthcare systems. Ultimately, the project seeks to ensure that every child and their family have access to high-quality palliative care whenever needed, regardless of where they live.

Representatives of the project from Landspítali are Oddný Kristinsdóttir, specialist in pediatric nursing; Ásta Bjarney Pétursdóttir, specialist in palliative nursing; and Jóhanna Hildur Jónsdóttir, consultant physician at the Palliative Care Unit and Hera, together with the oncology team at Barnaspítali Hringsins.

The project is funded by the European Union.