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- Palliative care
How to escalate concerns
Martha's Rule/Call 4 Concern is a patient safety initiative. We believe that patients, carers and family members know when their condition/ or that of a loved one is changing for the worse. This complements the other safety initiatives already in place at our hospitals. You can call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The main focus of the outreach service is to quickly respond to patients who are deteriorating in the hospital, and forms part of our clinical site management team.
Referral information
For patients
Information coming soon
For healthcare professionals
Specialist palliative care referral information
We understand that people living with serious illness may have many different needs, and several teams may be involved in their care. The information below is designed to guide healthcare professionals when considering a referral to Specialist Palliative Care (SPC).
Who the service is for
Our SPC team supports adults who are living with an advanced, progressive, life limiting illness and who have complex needs that require specialist input. This may include:
- Symptoms that are difficult to manage
- Emotional or psychological distress
- Carer or social issues that significantly impact on the patient’s physical or psychological state
- Concerns about end of life care or complicated grief
We work alongside primary and community teams to support people whose needs go beyond what general palliative care/primary care can safely and comfortably manage.
Referral criteria
To ensure specialist care reaches those who need it most, referrals are appropriate when the person:
- Is 18 years or older (if under 18yrs and transitioning to adult services please telephone the service discuss).
- Lives within our catchment area and is registered with a GP locally
- Has an advanced, progressive, life limiting illness, or has significant uncertainty regarding their potential for recovery.
- Has complex physical, psychological, or social needs that have not improved despite good generalist care
- Agrees to the referral (or, if lacking capacity, the referral is in their best interests)
If you’re unsure whether a referral is appropriate, please contact us — we are always happy to advise.
When to refer
A referral may be helpful:
- Early in the illness if symptoms or worries are becoming difficult to manage
- When family or carers are feeling under strain and this is significantly impacting on the patient’s physical or psychological state
- At any point when specialist guidance would improve quality of life
How to refer or contact us
Professionals, patients, and families are all welcome to reach out if they feel specialist support may help. Professionals may contact us for advice before making a referral.
Contact options
- Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (for Bournemouth and Christchurch)
- Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (for Poole)
- Telephone: 0300 019 5470
- In person: e.g. at GP surgery palliative care meetings
UHD professionals: please use the electronic referral form on the intranet.
Patients/families: you are welcome to self refer; for community referrals we ask that your GP is informed.
Please note that referrals sent by email will not be actioned at weekends and bank holidays. Please contact us by telephone at these times.
Information helpful to include
For all referrals:
- Name
- Date of birth
- Hospital or NHS number
- Current location
- Main concerns or reason for referral
- Referrer contact details
For community referrals, please also include:
- Home address
- Telephone number
- GP information
What the service cannot provide
To avoid misunderstanding, please note we are unable to offer:
- Respite care
- Long term admissions
- Practical community nursing (e.g. medication administration, arranging care packages*)
- Input for stable, non progressive conditions
*Hands on nursing care at home in the last days/weeks of life is available only for patients already under the Specialist Palliative Care Team.
Community Specialist Palliative Care
Community Specialist Palliative Care for patients of University Hospitals Dorset is provided by a team with bases at Forest Holme Hospice (covering Poole) and the Macmillan Unit (covering Bournemouth and Christchurch).
What is specialist palliative care?
Who it’s for
- People with advanced, life limiting illness with complex symptoms or psychosocial needs
Core Purpose
Improve quality of life by providing:
- Expert symptom management
- Emotional and psychological support
- Social and practical support
- Advance care planning and decision making help
How this service can help
- Managing symptoms such as pain, breathlessness, sickness or fatigue
- Emotional support if you’re feeling worried, low or overwhelmed
- Practical advice about equipment, benefits or help at home
- Support for family and carers
- Planning ahead so your wishes are known and respected
Who is in the team?
You may meet:
- Specialist palliative care nurses
- Palliative care doctors
- Therapists (physiotherapists and occupational therapists)
They work closely with your GP, district nurses and any other hospital or community teams involved in your care.
Where you can receive support
- In your own home
- At outpatient clinics
- By phone
Support is tailored to what you need — some people just need to be seen once, others need ongoing input and many people will need support on and off over the course of their illness.
How it fits with your other care
This service does not replace your usual care. It adds an extra layer of support when things feel difficult or symptoms become harder to manage.
What happens when I am referred?
You will be contacted either by the person who is going to be seeing you or one of the team and they will arrange a convenient time to see you.
If you have not heard from us and are expecting to, you can call 0300 019 5470 (also 0300 019 8115) and choose option 1 for Forest Holme or option 2 for Macmillan Unit.
24/7 telephone advice
Patients of the UHD Community Specialist Palliative Care service can call 24/7 for advice on 0300 019 5470 for patients of Macmillan Unit and 0300 019 8115 for patients of Forest Holme. In day time hours your call will go to one of the Clinical Nurse Specialists and outside these times your call will go through to the hospice ward teams. They are not able to come out and review you immediately but can give advice and support. If appropriate they may be able to arrange urgent review from our doctors/therapists or Hospice at Home service.
Self-referrals
You are able to refer yourself to the Specialist Palliative Care team but we would strongly recommend that you discuss it with the healthcare professionals looking after you instead and ask them to refer you. They will be able to tell you if they think you need to be referred and if not which services can better meet your needs and refer you to them. If healthcare professionals make the referral it will mean that we have all of the information we need and everyone that needs to be aware is aware.
We only accept referrals for patients with life-limiting illnesses and complex needs that can’t be met by the other services involved with their treatment and care.
To make a self-referral please call 0300 019 5470 or 0300 019 8115 and choose option 1 for Forest Holme (Poole) or option 2 for Macmillan Unit (Bournemouth and Christchurch).
Hospice Services
Our Hospices
We have two specialist palliative care units:
Forest Holme
For Poole, Wimborne and within areas of the Isle of Purbeck
Tel: 0300 019 8115
Website: https://forestholmehospice.org.uk/
Macmillan Unit
For Bournemouth, Christchurch, Ferndown, Verwood, Ringwood and Highcliffe.
Tel: 0300 019 5470
Website: https://macmillanlocal.org/
