New palliative care project to improve end of life care for patients
21/04/2022
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A new project is set to enhance the quality of care for patients with life-limiting conditions in Oxfordshire and South Northamptonshire.
The project will enable more people to receive personalised care, including being cared for in their own homes at the end of their life, provided that is their preference.
The project is a unique partnership between Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH), Sobell House Hospice Charity, Macmillan Cancer Support, and Social Finance.
Macmillan Cancer Support has entered into a funding agreement with OUH and Social Finance to provide up to £6.1 million funding to OUH for the project, while Sobell House Hospice Charity has entered into a grant agreement with OUH to provide a grant of up to £4 million.
It is made of up three phases, the first of which – Home Hospice – went live on 1 April, with further phases being implemented over the coming year.
Home Hospice aims to support people at the very end of their life whose choice is to die at home rather than in hospital. Patient Support Workers provide domiciliary care and support at home with specialist oversight and input from OUH Palliative Care teams.
Dr Victoria Bradley, Clinical Lead for Palliative Medicine at OUH, said: “I am very pleased that this project is now live. One of the main drivers behind it is improving patient choice and experience during end-of-life care.
“By reducing the length of time in hospital, people can continue to be cared for at home with the right support in place. Sometimes, people would rather be in familiar surroundings at the end of their life, and this project allows them to have power of choice and agency on how they receive their palliative care.
“The project is in addition to existing services provided by a wide range of valued hospices and care providers – we are all looking forward to amplifying these services and providing excellent compassionate care for our patients.”
Amelia Foster, Chief Executive at Sobell House Hospice Charity, said: “Sobell House Hospice Charity is delighted to be able to support this much-needed and innovative partnership project which will enhance palliative and end of life care across Oxfordshire and South Northamptonshire. We are proud to be able to work with OUH NHS Foundation Trust, Macmillan and Social Finance to improve access to care for those who want to die at home, and are so grateful to our supporters whose generosity has made this happen.”
Katy Saunders, Director in the Health and Social Care team at Social Finance, said: “Our aim is to enable health and social care teams to make change happen so that people live and die well. We are very pleased to be able to use social investment to kick start this new service.”
Elaine Wilson, Head of Partnerships at Macmillan, said: “Macmillan is committed to finding sustainable and innovative ways to improve the lives of the people we support and we are all very excited to see this service launch.”
Pictured: Christine Hedworth, Oluwabukola James-Adeyemi and Chloe Hobbs – members of the Home Hospice Team
Photo credit: http://www.flaviacatenaph.com/