NSHPCA Conference 2026
Understanding the Palliative Approach and End-of-Life Care Across the Lifespan
The Nova Scotia Hospice Palliative Care Association is proud to present NSHPCA Conference 2026, a two-day gathering dedicated to strengthening knowledge, collaboration, and innovation in palliative and end-of-life care. This year’s theme, Understanding the Palliative Approach and End of Life Care Across the Lifespan, brings together healthcare professionals, community organizations, researchers, caregivers, and people with lived experience to explore how compassionate, person-centred care can be delivered at every age and stage of life.
Hosted at the Best Western Bridgewater, the conference will feature expert speakers, interactive sessions, networking opportunities, and a renewed focus on improving palliative care across Nova Scotia.
- May 7 & 8, 2026
- Best Western Bridgewater Hotel
- conference@nshpca.ca
Download Conference Mobile App
Enjoy access to everything you need at NSHPCA Conference 2026. Just follow the steps below.
Mobile app – for conference participants.
- Scan the QR code to open the event in the Conf.app mobile app.
- If the app is already installed, the event will open instantly.
- If not, you’ll be redirected to the App Store or Google Play to install it — the event will load automatically after installation.
Conf.App is sponsored by:
Tickets
Tickets for the conference can be purchased below. We encourage early registration, as space is limited and demand is expected to be high for this year’s program. We look forward to welcoming you to an inspiring and impactful event.
Sponsorship
We invite you to partner with us as a sponsor for NSHPCA Conference 2026, a premier provincial event that brings together healthcare professionals, researchers, policy leaders, and community organizations committed to strengthening palliative and end-of-life care in Nova Scotia.
Centred on the theme “Understanding the Palliative Approach and End-of-Life Care Across the Lifespan,” this year’s conference will examine how palliative and end-of-life care principles apply across different ages, settings, and stages of illness, supporting individuals, families, and communities throughout the care journey. Your support will help advance meaningful dialogue, deepen understanding, and enhance the quality of care delivered across the province.
For more information, please contact Michael Kydd at mkydd@nshpca.ca.
Silver Sponsor
Community Sponsor
Break Sponsor
Conf.App Sponsor
Become an Exhibitor
We invite organizations, service providers, innovators, and community partners to join us as exhibitors at NSHPCA Conference 2026 – an event that brings together professionals, researchers, healthcare leaders, and community advocates dedicated to improving palliative and end-of-life care across Nova Scotia.
This year’s conference theme, Understanding the Palliative Approach and End-of-Life Care Across the Lifespan, will explore how culture shapes the way individuals, families, and communities experience death, dying, and grief. Exhibitors play a vital role in this dialogue by showcasing programs, services, research, tools, and resources that support compassionate care at every stage of life.
As an exhibitor, you will have the opportunity to:
- Connect directly with practitioners, policymakers, and community organizations.
- Share your work with a highly engaged audience.
- Increase visibility for your programs, services, or innovations.
- Strengthen partnerships within the palliative and hospice care community.
Whether you represent a healthcare organization, community-based program, educational institution, or wellness service, your presence helps enrich the learning environment and fosters stronger networks of care across the province.
You can register as an exhibitor by clicking the Exhibitor tile on the conference landing page.
For questions or additional information, please contact?
Beth Lynch
Director of Programs & Outreach, NSHPCA
conference@nshpca.ca
782-321-9448
Call For Abstracts
2026 CONFERENCE THEME
Understanding the Palliative Approach and End of Life Care Across the Lifespan
Abstract applications are no longer being accepted.
IMPORTANT DATES:
Submission Deadline: January 16, 2026 (CLOSED)
Notification of
Acceptance: February 16, 2026
Presenter Confirmation Required: March 13, 2026
QUESTIONS?
Contact: Dr Kristian Suen
Email: ksuen@nshpca.ca
Phone: 782-321-4558
SHARE WIDELY
Help us create a diverse and inclusive program that honours all voices in hospice palliative care and grief.
NSHPCA Conference 2026 Agenda
Day 1
Time
Session
Speaker
Topic
8:30 – 9:00 a.m
Registration & Networking
9:00 – 9:30 a.m.
Welcome & Opening Remarks
9:30 – 10:30 a.m.
Opening Keynote
Dr. Sammy Winemaker
Helping Patients and Families Face a Serious Illness: 7 Keys for More Choice and Control
10:30 – 10:45 a.m.
Refreshment Break & Networking
10:45 – 11:45 a.m.
Concurrent Breakout Sessions 1 (3 Streams)
11:45 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Lunch, Exhibitor Booths & Networking
1:30 – 2:30 p.m.
Concurrent Breakout Sessions 2 (3 Streams)
2:30 – 2:45 p.m.
Refreshment Break & Networking
2:45 – 3:45 p.m.
Concurrent Breakout Sessions 3 (3 Streams)
3:45 – 4:00 p.m.
Day 1 Wrap-Up
Evening
(Optional – Limited Space)
Time and registration details coming soon.
Film Screening: In the Realm of Death & Dreaming: Does Consciousness Continue After Death?
Director Johanna Lunn takes audiences on a personal and thought-provoking journey into near-death experiences, deathbed visions, and the science of consciousness. Through conversations with leading clinicians and researchers—shared with humour and compassion—the film explores what may happen after death and how these insights can lessen fear, inform end-of-life choices, and help us live more fully.
Day 2 | Half Day
Time
Session
Speaker
Topic
8:30 – 9:00 a.m.
Tea, Coffee & Networking
9:00 – 10:00 a.m.
Concurrent Breakout Sessions 1 (3 Streams)
10:00 – 11:00 a.m.
Concurrent Breakout Sessions 2 (3 Streams)
11:00 – 11:15 a.m.
Refreshment Break
11:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Closing Plenary Speaker
Dr. Patricia Caldeira
Integrating Palliative Care and Geriatrics: Challenges and Strategies
12:15 – 12:30 p.m.
Closing Remarks & Thank You
Speakers
Dr. Sammy Winemaker - Keynote Speaker - Topic: Helping patients and families face a serious illness: 7 keys for more choice and control
Dr. Sammy Winemaker is a palliative care physician who cares for patients with serious illness and their families in the home. She is an Associate Clinical Professor at McMaster University in the Department of Family Medicine, Division of Palliative Care. She has won numerous awards for her leadership and palliative care education for health care professionals
Dr. Patricia Caldeira - Plenary Speaker - Topic: Integrating Palliative Care and Geriatrics: Challenges and Strategies
Patricia Caldeira is a palliative care specialist with the South Shore Palliative Care Team in Nova Scotia. She graduated from the University of Sao Paulo in 2008 and practiced family medicine in Brazil before immigrating to Canada in 2012. She has worked in family medicine, long-term care, geriatrics, and subacute hospital medicine in Saskatchewan and Ontario from 2014 to 2020, and then completed a clinical fellowship in Palliative Care at University Health Network (Toronto) in 2021. She currently practices palliative care exclusively and, since July 2025, has served as Medical Director for the hospice beds at Fishermen’s Memorial Hospital in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia.
Conference Planning Committee
Marianne Arab
Provincial Manager of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care Cancer Care Program, NSHPCA Board Member
Tim Guest
Executive Director, NSHPCA
Laura Hicks
Cumberland Care Hospice Palliative Care Society, NSHPCA Board Member
Michael Kydd
Communications Director, NSHPCA
Paulette Levin
RN-AP, BScN, CHPCN(C) Palliative Care Home Consult Nurse, Interprofessional Practice Learning Leader Eastern Zone, Cape Breton
Beth Lynch
Director of Programs & Outreach, NSHPCA
Shelley Mann
Board Member South Shore Hospice Palliative Care Society and Chair of Education Committee
Kristian Suen, PhD
Community Relations and Research Lead
Adjunct Professor, Department of Medicine, Dalhousie University
Zoe Zhang
Administrative Assistant & Database Coordinator, NSHPCA
Contact: conference@nshpca.ca
Tickets for the conference can be purchased below. We encourage early registration, as space is limited and demand is expected to be high for this year’s program. We look forward to welcoming you to an inspiring and impactful event.