Meet some of the new IAHPC Board Members

Professor Michael I. Bennett

Mike Bennett qualified from University of Birmingham in 1988 and in 1997 became Consultant and Senior Clinical Lecturer in palliative medicine at St Gemma’s Hospice in Leeds. He completed an MD (doctoral thesis) in 1999 which resulted in the LANSS Pain Scale which is an internationally used tool for identifying neuropathic pain. From 2003 -2007 he established and directed the Leeds Pallium Research Group and in 2006 he was invited as a Visiting Professor to MD Anderson Cancer Centre, Houston USA.

He was appointed as the first Professor of Palliative Medicine at Lancaster University in October 2007 and now chairs the National Cancer Research Institute Palliative Care Clinical Studies Group. He also chairs the host committee for the European Association for Palliative Care Research Congress that is to be held in Glasgow during 2010, and is a field editor for palliative care within the Cochrane PaPaS group. Mike has published widely on cancer and neuropathic pain as well as other palliative care topics. He was recently awarded an NIHR Programme Development Grant to design and test interventions for community management of cancer pain.

Dr. Zipporah Vunoro Ali MD, MPH, Dip. Palliative Care

Dr Zipporah Ali is the national coordinator of Kenya Hospices and Palliative Care Association (KEHPCA) and a board member of APCA (African Palliative Care Association). She was among those who received the APCA award for her contributions to palliative care in Africa and her work on the inaugural board of APCA. She is also a member of the board of the Kenya Cancer Association.

Dr. Ali first became involved in hospice work as a volunteer in 1994 at the Nairobi Hospice. During this time, she developed an interest in palliative care and attended short courses on palliative care both in Nairobi and the UK. She joined the Nairobi Hospice as a full time employee in 1996 as the medical officer and was later promoted to the post of senior medical officer. She decided to become a full time palliative care doctor and pursue a higher diploma course in palliative care offered by Oxford Brookes University in conjunction with Nairobi Hospice. At that time, she was the first and only Kenyan doctor to practice palliative care on a full time basis. Dr. Ali plays an important role in education and training of health care professionals in palliative care and is part of the teaching team with the Oxford Brookes University - Nairobi Hospice. She also lectures to medical students at the University of Nairobi. Dr. Ali is also involved in advocacy and creating awareness of palliative care in Kenya.

Dr. Ali holds an MD from Ege University, Izmir, Turkey, a master’s degree in public health from the University of Nairobi and a higher diploma in palliative care from Oxford Brookes University. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in palliative care with the University of Dundee through the Commonwealth Scholarships.