At home service gives more choice to patients
PATIENTS now have a greater choice over their care and the new East Cheshire Hospice @Home service is a response to more people wanting to die at home in familiar surroundings.
The new service will be able to respond rapidly to:
Enable a patient to stay at home.
Return patients home if in a busy general hospital/treatment centre.
Reach the hospice where patients will be more comfortable.
Palliative and end-of-life patients will access the service through assessment by their GP/district or specialist (eg. Macmillan) nurse, hospital consultant, community matron or other health care professional.
Advanced nurse practitioner Sarah Dale, who will co-ordinate the new hospice service, said: “Most people would like to end their days in the comfort of their own home, but in Cheshire East some 42 per cent of patients at end-of-life will die in a busy hospital often due to a lack of community resources.
“We aim to bring highquality care and expertise to the patient where they feel at home and hopefully reduce costly hospital stays.
“I must stress that we’ll still need the hospice just as much as we do now because palliative care needs to cope with vastly differing levels of need.
“Some patients with multiple diagnoses will still require the expert clinical care and support which can only be offered within the specialist in-patient unit at the hospice.
“East Cheshire Hospice is already a fundamental part of the local health economy, working closely with NHS commissioners, statutory providers and third sector organisations.
“The hospice has consulted widely with patients and families to ensure the service meets its local need and avoids duplication.”