Services

Palliative care at home

Our palliative care team is able to see patients at home, or in consultant-led outpatient clinics. The team includes nurses (known as Macmillan nurses or palliative care nurses), doctors, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, technical instructors and social workers. We work closely with your GP and nurses in the community to provide seamless support for you and your family.

Our Macmillan Support Services includes volunteers. It works within our palliative care team to support adults affected by cancer or a life limiting illness by providing bereavement, befriending and information about support services. They also run a day hospice in North Tyneside which can also provide complementary therapies. For more information see our ‘Support for you and your family’ section on the website.

Our care home team support and train staff in care homes in North Tyneside to manage symptoms and provide support to residents towards the end of their life. They ensure the right support is available to prevent or limit unplanned admissions to hospital. Similar services are provided in Northumberland by the community matrons.

The Macmillan Care Support Team are nursing assistants (known as Macmillan carers) who can provide increased support for patients who are approaching the end of their life and who wish to stay at home.

How do I get urgent advice at home?

Marie Curie @ Northumbria Rapid Response Service is part of our Palliative Care Northumbria service in North Tyneside. They are able to respond within one hour to a call for urgent advice. If required, they will visit you at home. This service is available seven days a week from 9am until 7pm.

In Northumberland you can get urgent advice by contacting your GP, district nursing team or out of hours via NHS 111.

Palliative care in hospital

We see patients at all of Northumbria Healthcare’s hospitals and have dedicated palliative care units at our hospitals in Wansbeck and North Tyneside. They specialise in supporting people to live with a life-limiting illness and to manage their symptoms. Some patients choose to be at a palliative care unit in their last days of life. The palliative care units are not able to provide long-term care.

Palliative care units

We have palliative care units at our hospitals in Wansbeck and North Tyneside. They are NHS inpatient units that specialise in supporting people to live with a life-limiting illness and to manage their symptoms. Some patients choose to be at a palliative care unit in their last days of life. The palliative care units are not able to provide long-term care.

What care and support is available in the last days of life?

We will aim to support you and your family’s wishes about where you want to be cared for in your last days. Some people may have made these known in advance. It is important that we talk to you about this and where possible we will aim to meet your wishes.

If you would like to be cared for in your own home our Macmillan Care Support Team, who are nursing assistants known as Macmillan carers can provide support with your personal care and carer relief to enable friends and family to have a break from their caring role. This can be for a few hours during the day or overnight.

Useful information