End of Life and Palliative Care

Our community teams provide palliative and end of life care for people who are in the last year of life. This includes an assessment of the individual’s physical, psychological, emotional, spiritual, cultural and social needs. It also includes a personalised care plan which takes into account their preferences and wishes.

Our clinicians deliver nursing care in the person’s residence and also provide support to their family and loved ones. They are part of a team of healthcare professionals, including the person’s GP, who work together to achieve their goals. If specialist support is required, our nurses also liaise with palliative care experts such as St Peter’s Hospice and Weston Hospicecare.

Our End of Life Specialist Service support our clinicians with non-urgent advice, guidance, training and competencies. The End of Life Specialist Nurses work regularly with the community teams and undertake joint visits to enhance clinical skills, give peer support or to help manage the care of people with more complex health problems. The specialist service has links with local hospices, hospitals, care homes and other organisations across the area to continually develop and improve palliative and end of life care. This helps us to deliver a cohesive service which is equitable to all.

The End of Life Specialist Service can be contacted by our clinicians from Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays and weekends) between 8.am and 5pm.

Referrals are made by a healthcare professional like your GP or hospice nurse.

Referral to the service is via the Single Point of Access (SPA) – 0300 125 6789, seven days a week.

Other clinical guidance can be found on the Integrated Care Board’s Remedy site.