Menu

End of Life Care Together

Watch our short animation to explain the aims of the End of Life Care Together partnership.

Our Commitment

End of Life Care Together is a partnership of organisations across voluntary, health and social sectors and we’re committed to improving care towards the end of life for all.

Most of us say we would like to be cared for at home towards the end of our lives. But sadly this care isn’t always available within the current health and social care system. There are many reasons for this but, too often, it’s because a person's wishes aren’t communicated to all parts of the healthcare system. So we simply don’t know what care will be needed and when.

This is despite the huge dedication of health and social care professionals who are committed to doing their very best for their patients.

Currently 1 in 3 acute hospital beds are occupied by people at the end of life but we know that up to 40% of these admissions could be avoided if we work together, identify people’s end of life care preferences earlier and share these with those health and social care providers who will deliver this care.

By achieving this we can anticipate what care will be needed, where it will be needed and when. This will allow us to coordinate a more flexible and efficient health and social care system, reduce unwanted and unnecessary hospital admissions and most importantly, provide the best end of life care when it is needed most.

Our Progress

Our End of Life Care Together partnership now spans the health, social care and voluntary sectors. Led by NHS Highland and Highland Hospice, our partners, which include Macmillan Cancer Support, Connecting Carers, Marie Curie, Highland Senior Citizens Network, Scottish Care and more, are working together to create positive change.

Together, we have now launched the 24/7 Palliative Care Helpline. The service is an evolution of the NHS Out of Hours Helpline and provides a single point of access for 24/7 advice, support and information for patients nearing the end of life, their families, carers and professionals across Highland and Argyll and Bute. Find out more about the service here.

Our analysis of the benefits of this service have shown:

  • Between May and September 2023, people who died having used the helpline spent on average four fewer days in hospital in their last year of life following an emergency admission than would have been expected for this patient cohort.
  • The 245 people who accessed the Helpline spent a total of 980 fewer days in hospital, reducing the cost of hospital care for these people by £911,400 (based on published NHS Highland bed day rates).

    Further to this, our Palliative Care Response Service is currently operating in the Inverness area with a view to wider expansion. The service provides flexible and efficient access to social care and other support services at home for people nearing the end of life. Find out more about this service here.

    Our analysis of the benefits of this service have shown:

    • Between April and September 2023, people who died having been supported by the service spent on average 20 fewer days in hospital in their last year of life following an emergency admission than would have been expected for this patient cohort.
    • The 58 people supported by the PCRS spent a total of 1,160 fewer days in hospital, reducing the cost of hospital care for these people by £1,078,800 (based on published NHS Highland bed day rates).

    You can also read the personal stories of people who have benefitted from these services:

    The Cost of Change

    A positive change programme such as this requires not only professional collaboration but financial support. We’re hugely grateful to Macmillan Cancer Support who have, through their partnership with Social Finance, provided funding for the 24/7 Palliative Care Helpline and the Palliative Care Response Service.

    Social Finance are experts in social investment and have been working with Macmillan to find new and innovative ways to improve services supporting people at the end of their lives. The resultant Macmillan End of Life Care Fund has provided £1.38m of up-front funding for the 24/7 Helpline and the Palliative Care Response Service.

    Making Contact

    For further information, please contact Michael Loynd, Macmillan EOLCT Partnership Director by email at michael.loynd1@nhs.scot.

    Registered Office: Highland Hospice, Ness House, 1 Bishops Road, Inverness IV3 5SB.
    Telephone: 01463 243132. Email: generalenquiries@highlandhospice.org.uk
    Highland Hospice is a registered Scottish charity, no. SC011227 and a company limited by guarantee, no. SC093464. Cookie Policy
    Website by dynam