Hospice at Home
Hospice at Home (H@H) is a team of specialised hospice nurses who visit terminally-ill patients in their homes to give care additional to that provided by District nurses. During the day, 8am until 8pm, the H@H nurses make house calls, sometimes with District nurses. Visits generally last up to one hour. During the night our hospice-trained healthcare assistants will stay in the patient's home from 10pm until 7am, to provide bedside care and enable family carers to catch up on sleep.
Who can use this service?
Any adult (18 yrs+) who is suffering from an advanced serious medical condition that requires support from a specialised team. This includes those facing the end of life or with complex needs, or whose family carers need respite to be able to continue providing care at home.
What does this service offer?
H@H consists of a team of qualified Nurses and Health Care Assistants, led by a Sister, and working with the St Mary's Clinical Director and Medical Officers, all of whom have palliative care expertise. H@H provides:
- Symptom control
- Respite for family/carers
- Psychological support for patient, family and carers
- Terminal care
- Physical care - short term support to relieve a crisis in advanced illness
How does the H@H team work with other health care providers?
We are a compliment to all other community services. Your District Nurse and General Practitioner (GP) retain overall responsibility for your nursing and medical care and we work alongside them to provide specialised services to meet your particular needs.
How can I access this service?
Patients will usually be referred by their District nurse or a specialist, eg Macmillan, nurse. GPs and hospital doctors will also refer patients to the service. Patients or their families may make a direct enquiry to the hospice, but we will usually ask a District or specialist nurse to assess whether or not the service is appropriate.
What can I expect from this service?
A nurse from the H@H team will visit you to decide if our service is appropriate for you. After that assessment, your care will be planned with your agreement. This will include decisions as to whether attendance by a nurse or health care assistant, or both, will best suit your needs.
What does it cost?
There is no cost to patients or their families - the service is mainly funded by charitable donations from local people with some contribution from the NHS.
Hospice@Home referral process
If you are a Health Care professional and you would like to make a referral, please click here.
For routine enquiries please contact Angela Mason, RN:
Call 01229 483783 and leave a message on our answer phone.
Email home@stmaryshospice.org.uk
In an emergency please contact your GP or District nurse.