Information for patients, families and carers
This information has been jointly developed by:
- Wirral Hospice St John’s
- Wirral Community Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust (WCHC)
- Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (WUTH)
- Claire House Children’s Hospice
What is palliative care?
If you have an illness that cannot be cured, palliative care makes you as comfortable as possible by managing your pain and other distressing symptoms. It also involves psychological, social and spiritual support for you and your family or carers (NHS.UK).
Palliative care and support is available across Wirral for people who have a life limiting illness where the focus of care is achieving a good quality of life and the best symptom control. For some people this support may be required over a period of years and for others it may be for a few months or weeks.
Support is also available to family and friends. Most of the support is provided by Community Nurses and GPs but there may be times when situations are complex and more specialist support is required. This leaflet explains more about this specialist support.
Which organisations provide palliative care and what do they do?
In Wirral there are four key organisations working closely together to provide a diverse and specialist support service.
They are: Wirral Hospice St John’s, Wirral Community Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust and Wirral University Teaching Hospital, who provide care for people over 18, and Claire House Children’s Hospice who provide care for people up to age 25.
The level of care provided by the services will vary depending on need at the time. It may be a phone call, a one-off visit or regular visits.
Find out more about the palliative care services within these organisations, below.
Patients, families and professionals across Wirral can seek palliative care advice anytime by calling the Wirral Palliative Care Advice Line: 0151 343 9529, available 24 hours a day / 365 days a year.
- Option 1 if you are patient or family member / carer
- Option 2 if you are a professional seeking advice about someone you are caring for
- Option 3 if you are a professional calling from a care home for the End of Life Team
- Option 4 If you are a professional calling about someone aged 18-25 for advice from Claire House End of Life Service
Wirral Hospice St John’s
Wirral Hospice St John’s is located on the Clatterbridge Hospital site and offers a broad range of specialist and supportive care through four key services:
- Wellbeing
- Outpatients
- Inpatient Unit
- Hospice at Home
Care is provided by a multi-professional team of doctors, nurses, social workers, counsellor, spiritual care worker, children and young persons worker, occupational, physical and complementary therapists, Motor Neurone Disease worker and skilled volunteers.
Wellbeing services
Wellbeing services aim to support you and those close to you to cope with your illness in the best way possible. Engaging with them early on in your illness can help prepare for situations to come.
Group sessions create a supportive atmosphere in which you can spend time with others, with staff helping you to understand how to cope with common challenges of ill health. Activity sessions are sociable and give you the chance to learn new skills or revisit old ones.
Outpatient services
Consultants, registrars and specialty doctors in Palliative Medicine offer assessments via outpatient clinics. These appointments usually take place in the hospice building but can take place at home when required, often with a member of the Community Palliative Care Team, your GP or a Community Nurse.
Outpatient appointments are also available for counselling, complementary therapies and support from a Citizens Advice Bureau practitioner.
Inpatient Unit
People are admitted to the Hospice inpatient unit from home or hospital when it is felt that concentrated specialist care may be required, and symptoms or distress can be improved.
Care is provided by doctors, nurses and other health and social care staff. Beds are either in single rooms or bays. The unit is a short stay unit with many of those admitted being discharged home or to a care home.
Hospice at Home
The Hospice at Home service aims to help patients to remain at home in the final months and weeks of life. Tailored support is provided by daytime care, and night sitting is provided by the hospice team or our partner agency Marie Curie Care. Referrals are made by Community Nurses for those at home, or by the Discharge Team for those in hospital.
Support for families and friends
The hospice offers a range of services to give close family and friends opportunity to share concerns and access support. These include support groups, complementary therapies,
counselling, children and young persons’ support and benefit support. The bereavement service also offers support for up to two years after death.
How to access the hospice services
If you feel you would benefit from any of the hospice services, please speak to your Community Nurse via Single Point of Access: 0151 514 2222 (option1), your GP or you can contact the hospice
directly to discuss your needs.
Contact
Wirral Hospice St John’s main reception tel: 0151 334 2778 Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm. Outside of these hours please use Wirral Palliative Care Advice Line Tel: 0151 343 9529, available 24 hours / 365 days a year. Select option 1 – Patient and Family Support – which will be answered by staff at Wirral Hospice St John’s.
Address:
Wirral Hospice St John’s, Mount Road, Higher Bebington, Wirral CH63 6JE
Email [email protected]
This email is monitored Monday – Friday, 9.00am to 5.00pm. Please do not use this email for urgent requests about health care issues or appointments.
Wirral Community Specialist Palliative Care Team – Macmillan
Part of Wirral Community Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust (WCHC), providing a multi-professional approach, caring for patients with advanced progressive disease. The service’s aim is
to ensure that people’s wishes are met and they can be cared for in their preferred place of care
wherever possible.
The team includes:
- Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS)
- Senior Nurse Practitioners (SNP)
- Allied Health Professionals (Social Worker, Occupational
Therapist, Physiotherapist, Dietitian)
How to access the service
With your agreement, any healthcare professional caring for you can refer you to the service for help and support with complex needs. The team provides a seven-day service. The team offers face-to-face support at home, a clinic appointment with a nurse from the WCHC team at Wirral
Hospice St John’s, telephone consultations and virtual appointments via smart phone or tablet.
Further information can be found on our website.
Contact
Tel: 0151 328 0481 Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm (except Bank Holidays).
Weekends and bank holidays are covered as an on-call service, meaning you will need to be assessed by a Community Nurse and/or GP, or Registered Nurse in a care home. The clinician will then contact the service for advice or to arrange for the service to contact you.
Outside of these hours please use Wirral Palliative Care Advice Line Tel: 0151 343 9529, available 24 hours / 365 days a year. Select option 1 – Patient and Family Support – which will be answered by staff at Wirral Hospice St John’s.
Address: Wirral Hospice St John’s, Mount Road, Higher Bebington, Wirral CH63 6JE
Email: [email protected]
This email is monitored Monday – Friday, 9.00am to 5.00pm. Please do not use this email for urgent requests about health care issues or appointments.
Community and Night Nursing
There are multiple Community Nursing teams, provided by Wirral Community Health and Care,
across Wirral who provide community nursing to support you in your home (and care homes without nursing) 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Wirral Community Night Nursing service operates 5.00pm to 8.00am seven days a week/365 days a year to prevent unnecessary hospital admissions and to support you with palliative care needs in your home.
How to access the services
To access the Community Nursing Team for your area, please contact your GP for a referral into the service, or visit our website for a list of the contact numbers. Every referral is triaged and a clinician will call you back.
Contact
Community Nursing can be contacted via Single Point of Access: 0151 514 2222 (option1).
The night service can be contacted between 5.00pm and 8.30am on weekends and bank holidays on 0151 514 2222 (option 1).
General Practitioner
As your care needs change over time, your General Practitioner (GP) may be your first port of call to discuss your wishes for your future care. Your GP can help with discussing your advance care planning wishes with you and your family and help with symptoms, practical, emotional and spiritual support.
Your GP will help to co-ordinate your care needs, working closely with the community nurses, Specialist Palliative Care team, hospital and hospice to ensure flexible and continuous support
for you, your family or carers.
Hospital Supportive and Palliative Care Team
The Hospital Supportive and Palliative Care Team, provided by Wirral University Teaching Hospital,
is a team of doctors, nurses and Allied Health Professionals who have specific training in palliative
care. They provide advice and support for patients whose needs require specialist input alongside
the care provided by the teams on all wards across the hospital.
When it comes to making important decisions about your future treatment options or place of care, the team can guide you through these, aiming to make sure your wishes are fulfilled as much as possible. They also provide support for patients’ loved ones.
If the teams looking after you think your needs would be best managed primarily by the Supportive and Palliative Care Team, the Supportive Care Unit (SCU) may be discussed with you.
Based at Arrowe Park Hospital, the SCU is made up of individual side rooms where care is coordinated by a Consultant in Palliative Medicine and the primary focus is on improving your symptoms and quality of life. If you are being discharged from hospital and need ongoing
support, the service informs Wirral Hospice St John’s and Wirral Community Specialist Palliative Care Team about your ongoing care needs. Your GP, and Community Nurses if needed, will
also be updated.
How to access the service
Referrals are made by the ward team. If you are in the hospital, you or your family can ask the ward team caring for you for a referral. Once the referral has been made you will be regularly reviewed by the team.
Contact
The service is available seven days a week, including bank holidays, between 9.00am and 5.00pm. Whilst you are in hospital, you can contact the team by asking the ward nurse to call 0151 552 1892.
Claire House Children’s Hospice
Claire House is a children’s and young adult hospice that provides palliative and end of life care for babies, children and young adults up to the age of 25, providing support in a setting of their choice, including at home, hospice or hospital. For young adults between 18 and 25, they work collaboratively with the adult palliative care support services.
How to access the service
If a child or young adult has been diagnosed with a life limiting or life-threatening illness, they can be referred to the service by filling in the referral form on the website below or contacting the Hospice referrals team via the number below. The patient themselves, a parent or family member, or a professional can all refer.
Further information on services you can access from the hospice can be found on their website.
Contact
If you feel you would benefit from the Hospice’s support, please contact:
During office hours call 0151 334 4626 and ask to speak to one of the referrals team. For urgent referrals call 0151 334 4626 and ask to speak to the palliative care nurse on call.
Email: [email protected]
Address: Claire House Children’s Hospice, Clatterbridge Road, Bebington, Wirral, CH63 4JD.
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