Health Service Categories and Careers

A-Z OF SERVICES

Palliative Medicine is medicine and care provided to those patients who have a terminal or advanced disease, frailty, a limited prognosis, and who are ultimately preparing for the end of life. Its primary aim is to reduce pain and discomfort and ensure optimal quality of life, patient dignity and patient-focussed care. It involves pain and symptom management, referrals to respite care, advanced communication, counselling for the patient and their family, spiritual guidance, and facilitation of resources for home aid and financial assistance/planning. Palliative Care services provide safe, high quality, holistic palliative care in many settings, including hospital, ambulatory, community, care home and hospice settings, as well as in harder to reach community settings such as psychiatric units, hostels and prisons. Services are provided by a multi-disciplinary palliative care team, involving medical and nursing specialists, and support staff. With an aging population and growing prevalence of chronic diseases, palliative care is an important area of health care that will need to meet future demand. Palliative Medicine and care look at the physical, psychological, social, cultural, and spiritual needs of the patient and their family. It seeks to normalise their experience, build relationships based on empathy and trust, reduce suffering and provide comfort.

Palliative Medicine and Palliative Care Jobs

Palliative Medicine Physicians care for patients with active, progressive, and advanced disease, who are approaching the end of their life. They focus on quality of life by providing comprehensive clinical support and management of symptoms, and by coordinating other non-medical services to improve the psychosocial care of the patient and their family. Palliative Medicine Physicians have broad clinical experience in palliative medicine, cancer medicine and general internal medicine. They can apply pathophysiology and clinical pharmacology to diagnose and manage major symptoms, identify reverse pathologies, and provide comprehensive palliative care coordinating other professional staff and wrap-around support. They are expert communicators and clinical decision-makers, who manage patients, and lead clinical teams, in the hospital unit, hospice, care home or in the patient’s own home. They provide care that is structured around the needs and priorities of the patient and their family, coordinating important services, such as social and spiritual support. To become a Palliative Medicine Physician, registered doctors complete foundation and core training (IM stage 1, or ACCS-IM) followed by Palliative Medicine (and Internal Medicine) training, which takes approximately 4 years to complete and leads to a dual CCT and specialty registration with the GMC.

Registrars who work in Palliative Medicine posts are undertaking specialised advanced training in Palliative Medicine and its clinical practice. They work under Palliative Medicine Physicians and develop technical, procedural and communication skills, clinical expertise, and valuable work experience in the practice of Palliative Medicine and Care and service provision.

Nurse (Palliative Care) work with patients who have life-limiting illness, and their families and caregivers. They work in multi-disciplinary palliative care teams of doctors, nurses, pastoral and social workers, chaplains, counsellors, dietitians, pharmacists and physiotherapists. They provide symptom management and pain relief. They make assessments, follow care plans, fill out documentation and provide other palliative nursing care and services. Nursing roles in palliative care are available in a range of hospital, residential and community settings. Registered Nurses can also pursue postgraduate training In Palliative Care.