True Colours is thrilled to be providing funding for a pilot project in the West Midlands which is intended to devise a service model to provide access to specialist children’s palliative care advice for clinicians, including out-of-hours. This project is being led by Acorns Children’s Hospice and in collaboration with partners from across the children’s palliative care sector in the West Midlands.
The needs of babies, children and young people receiving palliative care vary hugely and can change very quickly. Palliative care at its best provides support to families whenever and wherever they need it, whether their child is at home, in hospital or in a hospice. 24/7 support is vital to ensure that information and advice can be accessed immediately.
There are an estimated 9,800 children with life-limiting conditions aged 0-19 years in the West Midlands. This project is intended to ensure that specialist medical and nursing advice is available 24/7 for those caring for children who are receiving care at the end of their lives.The work will include an out-of-hours service which will allow health care professionals to speak with a Specialist Nurse or Consultant in Paediatric Palliative Medicine who will be able to provide support and advice on the care of a child.
The hope is that this project will help to identify children who need extra care and support, improve care planning in-hours and improve equitable access to advice out-of-hours to help families make better choices about their child’s care, including their place of care. It is also hoped that the project will enhance the quality of children’s families lives as symptoms are better managed out of hours, avoid unnecessary hospital admissions and the length of hospital stays are reduced, especially during the last few weeks of a child’s life.
Ultimately, through supporting clinicians 24/7, children and their families will receive the specialist care they need at the end of their lives.True Colours is delighted to be supporting work in the West Midlands which is taking place alongside a similar pilot in the East. The hope is that the two projects will align and that, once the concept has been demonstrated, local funding from the Integrated Care Boards will ensure that the service becomes part of the main offer for the region.
