Previous research by Professor Irene Higginson and her team projected a massive increase in the demand for palliative care by 2040.
However, action research completed during 2020 suggests that this level of demand has now been reached in 2021.
This 7 point Palliative Care Action Plan is a succinct summary of what needs to change urgently.
The plan identifies challenges and solutions in the 7 following domains:
- Provide palliative care expertise in places where people are cared for: hospitals, care homes, hospices and at home
- Make joined up care a reality
- Empower patients and carers to have greater choice and control over the things that are important to them
- Invest in community care services
- Provide healthcare professionals and carers with high-quality palliative care training
- Use outcome measures to embed a system of continuous learning and improvement
- Fund world-leading research into palliative care