Our research

Around half a million people die in England each year and many of these patients express a wish for their end of life care to be provided at home.

In September 2018, two hospices – St Catherine’s Hospice in Crawley and St Barnabas House in Worthing – agreed a contract with West Sussex Continuing Healthcare (CHC) to deliver a pilot project. The 12 month pilot project delivered end of life care at home to patients who met CHC Fast Track criteria, within the respective hospice’s catchment areas.

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• A collaborative way of caring

Bed rest causes accelerated muscle loss in elderly patients. Since 2017 an NHS initiative #endpjparalysis aims to reduce deconditioning using methods such as encouraging patients to dress, social dining, ward tea parties and activities. Although our hospice inpatients have tailored physiotherapy, we believed the principles of this initiative could be appropriate for inpatients admitted for symptom control or respite.

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• ‘Sit up, get dressed, keep moving’. Applying the hospital initiative to the hospice setting.

The aim of this report was to create a pathway ensuring patients developing a malignant pleural effusion had a palliative care assessment and creation of an effusion management plan appropriate to their symptoms, prognosis and informed preferences.

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• A collaborative pathway for malignant pleural effusion

Aim of this research was to improve the decision-making process, ensuring patients fully understand all available options – reducing inappropriate commencement of dialysis and patient regret.

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• Delivering collaborative education to enhance patient-centred decision-making in renal failure