‘Cocoon’ programme advances paediatric palliative care in Singapore

It is expected to benefit more than 240 patients over its four-year pilot phase.

Lien Foundation, KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH), and SingHealth Community Hospitals (SCH) have launched ‘Cocoon’ for young patients with chronic, complex medical conditions and their families.

The programme establishes Singapore’s only paediatric facility at a community hospital at SCH’s Sengkang Community Hospital.

The $3.6m (S$4.7m) facility is supported by Lien Foundation and will provide eight beds by 2026 for patients up to 16 years old referred from KKH.

Over its four-year pilot phase, Cocoon is expected to benefit more than 240 paediatric patients.

In addition, the initiative introduces structured paediatric palliative care training programmes to strengthen local expertise.

The ‘Graduate Diploma in Paediatric & Perinatal Palliative Care’, expected to begin in 2026, will be a two-year programme designed to train 20 healthcare professionals per cohort through coursework and clinical attachments.

Meanwhile, the ‘Certificate Course for Paediatric & Perinatal Palliative Care’, launched in January, is a three-day foundation course focusing on holistic care and communication in serious illness.

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