Statement On Publication Of National Audit Office Report: 'End Of Life Care' - Help The Hospices, UK

Main Category: Palliative Care / Hospice Care
Also Included In: Cancer / Oncology;  Seniors / Aging
Article Date: 27 Nov 2008 - 3:00 PDT

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Help the Hospices, the leading charity supporting hospice care throughout the UK, welcomes yeasterday's (Wednesday 26 November) publication of the first ever National Audit Office report on care at the end of life, the most in-depth study of its kind to look at this issue.

The report follows the publication of the government's first ever End of Life Care Strategy for England, earlier this year.

The report calls on the government and the NHS to address a number of challenges in the delivery of end of life care, including:

- Tackling the wide variation in the level of primary care trust (PCT) spending on end of life care.

- Developing three-year funding agreements with independent charitable hospices. The report found that 70% of hospices have only one-year funding agreements with their PCTs.

- Improving the skill and competence in end of life and palliative care for all staff working in health and social care services.

David Praill, chief executive of Help the Hospices, commented: "The publication of this timely report will be welcomed by hospices across England. Most hospice care is provided in the community by independent local charities, supporting patients, their families and carers in their own homes as they approach the end of their lives, and providing a source of expert support, education and training to the wider health economy. To deliver on the government's End of Life Care Strategy, and to provide real choice for people, it is essential that PCTs ensure that a range of options continue to be available, including beds for those who need them, as well as day care. Most importantly, all care, wherever it is provided, needs to be patient-focused and adequately funded."

The National Audit Office study found that hospices responding to the survey supported 38,000 people in their inpatient facilities, and a further 112,000 people in the community during 2006-2007. This challenges the widely used but misleading statement that only 4% of the 500,000 deaths in England each year occur within a hospice, by demonstrating that most hospice care is provided in people's own homes.

The report also found that many people change their minds about their choice of where they want to die as they get closer to death. Hospices support large numbers of people to die at home, as well as caring for people until the end of their lives in hospices, and a variety of options are needed to deliver true patient choice at the end of life

David Praill concluded: "This new report should help to ensure that all PCTs prioritise end of life care within their local communities, and that they work closely with hospices in their area to deliver on the End of Life Care Strategy. It is vital that the extra funding announced by the government to support the new national strategy is used to address the gaps identified in the National Audit Office report."

About hospice care

There are over 240 hospices caring for adults and children living with life-limiting and terminal illnesses in the UK, and the vast majority are local independent charities. Hospices specialise in delivering front-line care to thousands of people affected by terminal illness and their families, both in their own homes and via day care and bedded units. Services include expert pain control, symptom relief, skilled nursing care, counselling, complementary therapies, physiotherapy, creative activities and spiritual/religious care. Hospice care also extends to families and friends of patients through services such as bereavement counselling and advice and support for those caring for someone at home. Care is given completely free of charge to patients and families.

Hospice care receives an extremely high level of public support. An independent survey commissioned by the BBC[1] found 97% satisfaction among people whose loved ones had received hospice care. A total of £313 million was donated or bequeathed to hospices in 2007, representing an average of £5 from every adult and child in the UK[2].

About Help the Hospices

Help the Hospices is the hospice movement's national charity. In particular we support our 182 hospice members in their vital work on the front line of caring for people who face the end of life. The majority of hospice care is provided by local independent charities rooted in the communities they serve. Hospices provide a wide range of care for people living with life-limiting and terminal illness and their families, from inpatient beds to day care and care for people in their own homes. Health services are funded separately by the devolved government in each UK nation. In England the government contributes an average of 31% of running costs for adult hospices (predominantly through Primary Care Trusts) and about 15% for children's hospices - the rest has to be found by charitable fundraising (note: based on latest figures available). About 100,000 volunteers work in UK hospices, and hospices couldn't do the work they do without them.

http://www.helpthehospices.org.uk

Help the Hospices has produced a report which outlines its hopes for the government's End of Life Care Strategy. It is available at http://www.helpthehospices.org.uk

Help the Hospices

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