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Palliative care services
The hospital specialist palliative care team covers Scarborough, Bridlington, and York Hospitals. If you are referred to the service, you and your family/carers will be offered palliative care and advice by the team of nurses and doctors, with the help of other colleagues when needed.
We work in all areas of the hospital, including the emergency department, intensive care, the wards, and outpatient clinics. You can be referred to us for palliative care by the team looking after you in the hospital.
The hospital palliative care team supports you and your family while you are in hospital. Once you go home, if this is required, we will refer you to our colleagues in local community palliative care teams.
We offer lots of different support, including:
- Supporting you, your family, and carers to help you manage your illness
- Helping you to manage your symptoms, such as pain, sickness, and breathlessness
- Explaining the treatment options you may be offered
- Offering information on spiritual, social, practical, and financial issues
- Providing specialist advice to those involved in planning your discharge from hospital
We can discuss your choices for types of future treatment and care with you and refer you to other professionals who will continue your care in hospital, at home, or in a care home or hospice.
How do patients and carers access this service?
You need to be referred by a doctor or nurse on the ward where you are having treatment.
What postcode areas does this service cover?
You will have access to specialist palliative care if you are an inpatient at any of our hospitals. Your home address does not matter.
York office: 01904 725835
Scarborough office: 01723 342446
Community palliative care
Our Trust provides community palliative care to the York and Selby area.
The team consists of Community Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNSs) and support from a consultant in Palliative Medicine. The specialist team members have gained further training and experience in Palliative Care.
CNSs are available to discuss issues which may be having an impact on your life whether physical, emotional, spiritual or social. The CNSs have a good knowledge of what can often help, including medication to improve symptoms such as pain, sickness or breathlessness. They have time to discuss thoughts and feelings you may wish to share and give information which can often help you make choices. The team is here to support you and your family.
The CNSs work closely with the consultant and can request a medical out-patient appointment for you to attend or, if you are not well enough to attend, they can visit you at home. The community team can also refer you to our day services or to be admitted to one of the wards on the in-patient unit if appropriate and a bed is available.
Please contact the discharge team for updated information on FastTrack.
The community team work closely with other professionals who may be involved with your care including GPs, district nurses and hospital consultants and nurses.
Accessing our service
Your GP, district nurse or hospital specialist team can refer you to our service. They will inform us of your illness and any problems you are experiencing which we may be able to help with. A team member will contact you to make an initial appointment with you. At this first appointment we will discuss with you the best way we can support you until these issues are resolved or addressed as best we can. To do so we may need to visit or contact you by phone for a period of time. We will ensure you have contact with other services, if required, such as your GP or district nurse. Once we agree issues are resolved or managed as best we can, contact with our service will stop. However, if your needs change it can be accessed again if required through contact from yourself, a family member, doctor or nurse.
York Community Palliative Care Office: 01904 777770
Scarborough and Ryedale Community Palliative care is provided by St Catherine’s Hospice, Scarborough.
Pocklington Community Palliative care is provided by Humber NHS Trust.
District nursing
The district nursing teams in York provide a 24 hour service to patients in the community. If you have a life-limiting illness they will care for you and help support your family / carers. The teams are led by a qualified district nurse, who has had specialist training in caring for patients at home. They work with registered nurses (community staff nurses) and healthcare support workers.
District nurses cover the whole of York and some surrounding areas and are based in locations around the city. Your GP can refer you to the district nurses on your behalf. You can also be referred from local hospitals, hospices, social services, voluntary sector organisations and carers. For details of how you can contact a district nurse outside of normal working hours, please go to the out of hours section.
District Nursing single point of contact telephone number: 01904 721200
District nurse provision for Scarborough and North Ryedale is provided by Humber NHS Trust: S&R Community Services (CAS): 01653 609609
Hospice care
Hospices care for the whole person, whilst aiming to meet all needs – physical, emotional, social and spiritual. At home, in day care and in the hospice, they care for the person who is facing the end of life and for those who love them. Nearly half of all people admitted to a hospice return home again.
They provide care through the inpatient unit, day services and community services.
How do patients and carers access this service?
For referrals for hospice care a health care professional will need to fill out and sign a referral form. This can be completed by your GP, district nurse, hospital palliative care team or hospital specialist nurse.
Please follow the following links to our local hospices websites for more information:
Information for patients and carers
If you live outside of York or Scarborough locality and would like to know the support available in your area please contact your local GP or hospice.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) also provides information on how to get started with using health and social care services and what you need to do to find the right care service for you.
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Palliative care services
