What is Palliative Care?
Palliative care is much more than people think. Palliative care aims to enhance the quality of life and help patients live as actively as possible. While it can provide relief from pain and other symptoms, it also uses a team approach to address the needs of both patients and their families.
It integrates the psychological and spiritual aspects of care. It intends neither to hasten nor postpone death. Palliative care regards dying as a normal process. It also offers a support system to help the family cope during the patient’s illness and in bereavement.
The WHO definition of palliative care is:
“An approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problems associated with life-threatening illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and treatment of pain and other problems, physical, psychosocial and spiritual.”
(World Health Organisation, 2018)
Who should receive palliative care?
Anyone who has been diagnosed with a life-limiting illness, which is progressive, has a terminal phase where the client and family want to focus on quality of life.
Patients can receive palliative care together with other therapies that are intended to prolong life.
Life-limiting illnesses include (but are not limited to):
- &Cancer
- &Heart disease
- &Lung disease
- &Dementia
- &Huntington’s disease
- &Motor Neurone disease
- &Parkinson’s disease
- &Children with progressive neurological conditions
- &HIV/AIDS
What is community palliative care?
Community palliative care takes place in the home of the client – whether this is in their house, an aged care facility, or anywhere that they identify as being their home.
Our team of Doctors, Nurses, Social Workers, Massage Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists and Psychologists work with patients GP’s and specialists to manage patients physical symptoms, offer spiritual care, art and massage therapy, counselling and bereavement support, and counselling. This team can assist patients to die in their preferred location of choice – such as home.
There is 24-hour telephone support and in-home visits as required.
Banksia provides these services at no cost to our clients and their families.
Who can refer to palliative care?
Anyone can refer themselves, a loved one or a friend to Banksia Palliative Care Service, with permission from the person being referred.
- Referrals can come:
- By phone 03 9455 0822
- &GPs, Nurses and Specialists can also refer someone to our service.
- &Via this link
How does palliative care work with my existing care?
Our palliative care team will liaise with your existing GP and specialists.
How much does community palliative care cost?
Banksia Palliative Care Service provides no-cost services to our clients and their families. This includes all of the services we provide.
There may be some costs involved for the hire of equipment if required, or if additional services such as Bolton Clark are required.
What Palliative Care is not…
Palliative care does NOT mean terminal care, though we do provide both. We will provide support and care every day that the client is with Banksia, and that will include terminal care as required.
A common misconception about palliative care is that a person is going to die soon, or very quickly – this is often NOT the case. Many illnesses take many months, even years to reach the terminal phase – the timeline depends on how advanced the illness is when the diagnosis is made.
Please see the following table:
Our whole team sees dying as s normal process, and we strongly believe that every person who has a life-limiting illness benefits from specialist palliative care.
We will never hasten nor postpone death, however we will ensure optimal comfort for every client, and provide much-needed help to our carers throughout the duration of the illness and into bereavement.
