Specialist palliative and end-of-life care services at County Hospital in Stafford are set to expand following new funding for University Hospitals of North Midlands.
The investment will increase the number of specialist palliative care nurses and allow UHNM to provide the service seven days a week at both County Hospital and Royal Stoke University Hospital.
The additional nursing capacity will be funded over the next two years through a partnership involving NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board and end-of-life charity Marie Curie.
Support available earlier in hospital visits
The expanded service will place specialist palliative care expertise within the emergency departments at both hospitals.
UHNM says this should help staff identify patients who may benefit from palliative or end-of-life support earlier in their hospital journey.
It could also allow conversations about patients’ wishes and preferences to take place sooner, alongside more proactive care planning.
The service is intended to improve coordination between hospitals, community healthcare teams and hospices.
Team will be expanded
Charmaine Butcher, UHNM End of Life Clinical Lead and Palliative Care Advanced Practitioner, said the partnership would allow the trust to expand its specialist team.
She said it would build on the existing model within emergency departments while helping improve the experience of patients and their families.
The partnership will also support staff training, workforce development and an independent evaluation of the service.
Marie Curie will provide its expertise in palliative and end-of-life care alongside its financial contribution.
Caroline Meredith, Associate Chief Operating Officer at UHNM, said the investment would help more patients receive the right care in the right place and at the right time.
The new funding covers both County Hospital in Stafford and Royal Stoke University Hospital.
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