NHS Borders 

Information about the Specialist Palliative Care Team and what we can offer – for patients, their loved ones
and carers

What is Palliative Care?

Palliative care may be offered to someone who has a life-limiting illness. This can be illnesses such as cancer,
heart or kidney failure, motor neurone disease, COPD, and many other illnesses. Most people with a life- limiting illness will be cared for by their GP and community nursing team, sometimes with input from their hospital specialist. But some people will also be referred to the Specialist Palliative Care Team, and this leaflet is designed to explain what we can offer.

Support with physical symptoms

Some people can experience physical symptoms as a result of their illness. This can be symptoms such as pain, nausea, breathlessness, constipation, a loss of appetite. The Specialist Palliative Care Team can offer advice and help people to manage these symptoms.

Emotional support

Being diagnosed with a life-limiting illness can be a worrying time for a person and those around them. Some
people can feel down too. The Specialist Palliative Care Team can help support a person and their loved ones,
or signpost to other sources of support if appropriate. We work closely with agencies such as The Carers Trust
and Cancer Information and Support Services.

Help with spiritual distress

A life-limiting diagnosis can make people reassess their priorities and think about what gives their life meaning.

This is something that the Specialist Palliative Care Team can talk to a person about, and again, signpost to
further help if needed.

Help with social support

For some people, a life-limiting illness can leave them with worries about finances, work, housing, family support and other social concerns. This is not something that needs to be faced alone, and we can signpost to help with these issues.

Practical support

Some people can find that their illness has an impact on their independence as time passes, and they may need some items of equipment to help them maintain their function and safety. The Specialist Palliative Care Team can co-ordinate the provision of equipment by working closely with community nursing teams and occupational therapists.

Working together

In the Specialist Palliative Care Team, we are used to people having multiple professionals involved in their care – GPs, District Nurses, Hospital Consultants, Specialist Nurses, Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists,
Dieticians, Speech and Language Therapists, Social Workers, and many more. We are experts in co-ordinating
the care between these professionals to try to ensure a joined up approach to a person’s care.

A holistic approach

In palliative care, what matters to us is whatever is most important to the person. We look beyond the illness and see the person, their loved ones, and what gives them quality of life.

Who is in the Specialist Palliative Care Team?

The Specialist Palliative Care Team is made up of doctors, registered nurses, healthcare support workers, physiotherapists and pharmacists. The hospital outreach team is based at the Margaret Kerr Unit but will see patients throughout the hospital, and the doctors will also see people as out-patients, and occasionally visit people in their homes.

People at home can be supported by the Community Palliative Care Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) team, who
provide advice and support from Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm.

If you are happy to be supported by the Palliative Care Team, we will ensure that you know how to contact the members of the team when you need to.

How can I be referred?

Any healthcare professional can refer a person to the Specialist Palliative Care Team. Occasionally, we receive
referrals directly from a patient, their loved one or carer, and this is fine.

Further information may be found from:

•  The Borders Macmillan Centre tel:01896 826888
•  The Margaret Kerr Unit tel:01896 827919

If you, or your loved one, is an in-patient, you can ask the ward to contact the Specialist Palliative Care Team to visit to explain more about the service.