Katharine House Hospice has joined three other hospices in a new partnership designed to provide more specialist palliative and end-of-life care across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent.
The Stafford-based charity is working with Compton Care, Dougie Mac and St Giles Hospice on a Rapid Response and Hospice Virtual Ward service, backed by investment from NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board.
Nearly £5 million has been awarded towards the programme, with £1.8 million available in the first year and £2.7 million in the second as the service expands.
More specialist care closer to home
The partnership is intended to give people with complex palliative and end-of-life care needs quicker access to specialist support when their condition changes or urgent help is required.
Hospice teams will work alongside NHS services to provide symptom management, care planning and support intended to help more patients remain at home or in another preferred place of care where clinically appropriate.
The service will also support some patients to leave hospital sooner when they no longer require an inpatient bed.
The four hospices say the programme is expected to support hundreds of people each year and could help reduce avoidable hospital admissions.
What is a Hospice Virtual Ward?
A virtual ward allows patients to receive a higher level of clinical monitoring and specialist support outside a traditional hospital ward.
In this case, specialist hospice teams will provide coordinated palliative care in people’s homes or other appropriate settings, working with NHS partners when a patient’s needs change.
It is being introduced alongside an expanded rapid response service, allowing specialist teams to intervene more quickly during a palliative care crisis.
The new programme builds on an existing 24-hour Specialist Advice and Referral Line serving Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent.
Four hospices working together
Compton Care, Dougie Mac, Katharine House Hospice and St Giles Hospice will combine their staff, expertise and resources through the new service.
The aim is to make specialist palliative care more consistently available across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, regardless of where a patient lives.
David Fletcher, Chief Executive of Katharine House Hospice and co-chair of the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Clinical Improvement Group, said the partnership was about making hospice expertise a more integrated part of the wider health and care system.
He said faster access to specialist support could help people remain in the place that is right for them, while also providing another option when admission to hospital may not be necessary.
Funding only covers the new service
Katharine House has stressed that the NHS investment is specifically for the Rapid Response and Hospice Virtual Ward programme.
It does not replace the charitable funding required to provide the hospices’ wider services.
All four organisations remain independent charities and continue to rely heavily on voluntary donations and community support to fund much of their existing specialist care.
Katharine House Hospice, which has supported people in Stafford and the surrounding area since it was established by volunteers in 1989, provides care to people living with incurable illnesses as well as support for their families.
The new collaborative service is expected to expand over the next two years.
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