Split has become the first city in Croatia to offer palliative care for children who are visited at home by a team of two paediatricians and a nurse, a local health official said.

The head of the Split County Health Centre, Marko Radja, said that the children who need palliative care are children suffering from complex chronic diseases and are cared for by their family members, family doctors and paediatric emergency teams. Many of them are dependent on various medical aids.

The new palliative care team started work on 16 September and is led by Dr Julije Mestrovic, who until recently was the head of the clinical hospital in Split.

Six palliative care teams planned

The team will make home visits on request, Radja said, pointing out that there are currently around 40 children suffering from incurable diseases in the Split region.

The Split-Dalmatia County is to have six palliative care teams. Currently there are only three, with the palliative care team for children being the fourth.

The head of the children’s palliative care team, Dr Mestrovic, said that they want to set up a county register with data on patients who need palliative care.