Palliative care at Guildford Hospital

What is palliative care?

Palliative care is specialised support for people living with a serious or long-term illness. It focuses on managing pain and other difficult symptoms, while also offering emotional, practical and spiritual backing for both you and those closest to you.

What conditions does palliative care help with?

A broad range of serious illnesses can benefit from palliative care, among them:

• cancer
• heart, kidney or liver disease
• advanced lung conditions such as COPD
• neurological conditions such as motor neurone disease, multiple sclerosis or Parkinson’s disease
• dementia
• HIV and AIDS.

It isn't only for people who are dying. Palliative care is available from the point you're diagnosed with a serious illness and can be given alongside treatments still aiming to cure or control your condition.

What are the benefits of palliative care?

The aim is to keep you feeling as at ease as you can be, easing pain and other difficult symptoms while supporting your emotional, social and spiritual wellbeing too. This whole-person approach can improve quality of life for both you and your family, and may also ease anxiety and low mood.

Where can I receive palliative care?

• In a clinic, seeing a palliative care provider much as you would your GP.
• In hospital, where a specialist team can help manage pain or other symptoms during your stay.
• At home, with support from a healthcare professional such as a community or hospice nurse.
• In a care home or hospice, where staff can provide this support directly.

A team of this kind typically brings together doctors, nurses, social workers and spiritual advisors, working alongside your other healthcare providers rather than replacing them.

What happens before starting palliative care?

Getting started generally requires being put in touch by a healthcare professional already familiar with your case, whether that's your GP, a hospital consultant, or a nurse.

Already being looked after somewhere like a ward, residential setting or hospice makes things simpler still, since the staff already looking after you day-to-day can typically set this up without you needing to ask elsewhere.

What kind of support does palliative care provide?

• Symptom relief, using methods such as medication, breathing exercises, relaxation techniques and practical advice on issues like sleep and appetite.
• Education, helping you understand your condition and the choices available so you can make decisions that feel right for you.
• Social support, including help connecting with support groups, or with talking to family members about what’s happening.
• Spiritual support, perhaps through a chaplain or someone in a similar role, for anyone who finds this valuable.

How long does palliative care last?

There's no set length of time. Some people receive it for a short spell, others for months or years, continuing however long it keeps proving genuinely useful. You can keep receiving other treatments for your condition throughout, since the two can run side by side without limit.

What are common misunderstandings about palliative care?

The biggest misunderstanding is that palliative care is only for people who are dying. This isn't the case. It's meant for anyone whose serious illness is affecting how they're living, whatever their expected timeframe might be. Some people hesitate to accept this kind of support because of this misconception, which can mean missing out on help that could genuinely make a difference.