In Autumn, 2011 with the support of the Open Society Georgia Foundation and Open Society Foundations the civil groups launched a nation-wide campaign entitled “No Pain in Our Families.” Its goal is to advocate for the fundamental human right to life without pain and create an environment where every human being has access to quality pain management.
The campaign aims at creating demand for less painful medical care at the grassroots level. We believe that this will push policy makers and health care officials to introduce modern pain management methodologies.
“Although the acute pain is treatable with currently available medications and techniques, a large gap between evidence and practice results in widespread under-treatment. Treatment of pain in Georgia is no exception. The local medical sector lacks practice in pain management and outdated attitudes towards enduring pain persist. With this campaign we try to advocate for the fundamental human right to life without pain and create an environment where every human being has access to quality pain management. We should know speak out against widespread under-treatment. Together we can create demand for less painful medical care and push health care officials to establish modern pain management systems in Georgia,”-Irakli Imnaishvili, coordinator of the project says.
Palliative care is the only field in Georgia where the standards of pain management are applied most competently. It is a multi profile treatment provided at special medical institutions called hospices. It aims at relieving the pain of individuals suffering from terminal illnesses and providing social and psychological aid together with moral support.
Currently, there are only two hospices operating in Tbilisi. Thanks to grants and other donations the palliative care is provided for free at the hospice of the Female Convent of the Transfiguration.
In the framework of the project a charity jazz concert was held to support the hospice of the Female Convent of the Transfiguration. The concert will take place at Tbilisi State Rustaveli Theatre on Wednesday, November 16. The event gathered famous Georgia jazz musicians and guests over 700.
In order to inform Georgian society that life without pain is not just a dream, but a basic human right, we launched the website www.tkivilisgareshe.ge. Within 24 hours of its launch, over two thousand users had registered their support on it. The web site is interactive and all the visitors have an opportunity of sharing their pain experience on the main wall.
The Nanuka’s Show, one of the most popular and famous programs in Georgia was the first who covered the launch of the campaign. On November 26 the campaign was moved to regions where the students engaged citizens in street campaigns and disseminate promotional materials.
Follow the link to get more information on the campaign.