Palliative care should be extended

Palliative care services provided by social care staff should be expanded, says a new report published today by the NHS Confederation.

Most terminally ill people wish to die at home but a lack of palliative care often makes this impossible.

“According to latest figures from the National Council for Palliative Care, 56 per cent of terminally ill patients would prefer to die at home but only 20 per cent currently do so while only 11 per cent of people want to die in hospital but that’s where 56 per cent spend their final hours,” said Jo Webber deputy policy director of the confederation

The report recommends:

 an increase in home and community care so more people can choose to die outside hospital

 treating carers as members of the health and social care team and improving their support by, for example, expanding the role of social and voluntary care to provide respite and night-sitters

 that palliative care should be included in all health and social care professional training

 that end-of-life care needs to be agreed by all health, social and voluntary organisations involved because it requires a joined-up, partnership approach

Improving end of life care click here