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The experience of death and dying has changed considerably in Australia over the last century. Social, economic, and carer circumstances have evolved, and life expectancy has increased alongside a greater prevalence of chronic conditions with complex symptoms and multi-morbidity. This has influenced a shift to larger proportion of deaths into hospitals and residential aged care facilities.
However, being cared for and dying at home is most people’s preference. The Greater Choice for At Home Palliative Care (GCfAHPC) measure aims to help make that possible. The GCfAHPC measure provides funding for coordinating palliative care through PHNs. Goals include to:
- improve your access to the best palliative care at home
- support palliative care services in primary health and community care
- make sure you get the right care, at the right time and in the right place to reduce unnecessary hospital visits
- generate and use data to improve services
- use technology to provide flexible and responsive care, including after-hours care.
CHN conducted a needs review to better understand the current palliative needs in the ACT. As part of the review 55 stakeholders were consulted, describing barriers, enablers and insights that they have experienced when caring for palliative patients in the ACT. This valuable feedback has informed the activities that CHN has undertaken and are planning under the Greater Choice for At Home Palliative Care. The included an update of CHN’s Advance Care Planning webpage.
During the Advance Care Planning week, in March 2023 CHN conducted 2 face-to-face workshops on Advance Care Planning workshop for Practice Nurses, promoting advance care planning programs and resources. Following the workshops, the HealthPathways team reported on an increase in the Advance Care Planning pathways in the ACT.
Two workshops held were sold-out including ‘Mastery of Breathlessness’ and an evening workshop titled ‘Introduction of Palliative Care services in the ACT’. The aim of the second workshop was to increase understanding of ‘who to’ and ‘when to’ refer patients that are approaching end of life. These workshops were well attended by GPs, Research Nurses and Allied Health staff from the primary health care and community health sector. The HealthPathways palliative care referral pathways were reviewed and updated to ensure that they reflected the current referral pathways for palliative patients and their families in the ACT.
CHN is represented on the ACT Health Palliative Care Operations Committee and Governance Committee. CHN has also been supporting the Community Health Nursing Team to access palliative care assessment tools in the Digital Health Record to assess, monitor and respond to physical and psychosocial needs of patients as they approach end of life. CHN has promoted palliative care resources, learning opportunities and programs available to service providers and general practices through GP Liaison Units, CHN newsletters, HealthPathways and social media.
