Palliative care includes:

  • Promoting health and living well, including advance care planning, to have the best possible quality of life, optimise comfort, maintain patient, family and carer independence as long as possible, and live well at the end of life and die with dignity.
  • Being flexible and sensitive to the needs of patients, families and carers to make home care easier
  • Providing relief from pain and other distressing symptoms, for example: nausea, weakness, fatigue, anxiety, sadness
  • Patients, families and carers participating in their care, providing information, helping with decision making and supporting choices made
  • The mind-body connection – mind, body, spirit, physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and cultural aspects of life – combining, as needed, physical health care with social, welfare and spiritual care
  • Coordinating care, whether from the palliative care service, other health and personal care services or visiting services from out of the area
  • Helping patients, families and carers with emotional and spiritual issues which may arise, including reducing fear and preparing for dying and death, and during bereavement if required.