New guidance for end of life care

New guidance on how to improve end of life care for patients is set to be issued to hospital managers and directors.

The move is aimed at helping more patients play a greater role in planning their own treatment, as well as allowing them to die in a setting of their own choosing.

Framed in a document entitled Transforming End of Life Care in Acute Hospitals: the route to success ‘how to’ guide, it brings together two key improvement programmes developed by the National End of Life Care Programme (NEoLCP) and the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement.

It also contains guidance from the Institute’s Productive Ward: Releasing Time to Care, which forms part of the Productive Series being implemented by trusts across England.

NEoLCP deputy director Anita Hayes said: “This initiative gives all staff an opportunity to change end of life care for the better so that people are treated with dignity and have a voice in the planning and delivery of their own care.”

Maggie Morgan-Cooke, head of relationships at the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement, said: “Actively involving staff, patients, carers and other stakeholders, backed by visible executive support from a nominated board member and steering group, will help embed the cultural change that is needed to sustain improvement.”

She said it will help people to have a “good death” in the setting of their choice.

In addition, it will help acute trusts make best use of their resources in line with the Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention challenge.

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