Contacts
Contact:
Sheila Williamson
IP Project ManagerEast Midlands Cancer Network – Mid Trent LocalityMid Trent Cancer Office
Organisation:
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
Department of Clinical Oncology, City Campus Nottingham City Hospital Hucknall Road Nottingham United Kingdom
Tel:
0115 9627988
07966 330312 (Mobile)
Email:
Case study:
16 February 2009
Information Prescription for end of life care in Nottingham City PCT
Key points
- Nottingham City PCT is piloting a scheme of Information Prescriptions aimed at giving people approaching the end of their life more control over the management of their care
- The ‘prescriptions’ encourage patients to identify their needs, concerns and wishes and indicate where they can get further support and information
- The pilot continues until March 2010. It is hoped to widen it to include other PCTs.
Nottingham City PCT is currently piloting a scheme of Information Prescriptions (IPs) to increase access to information and allow those approaching the end of their life to manage their care more effectively and stay more independent.
The Information Prescription is a document filled in by patient and clinician which aims to identify the patient’s needs, concerns and wishes and to indicate where they can get further information and support. The template is being issued to any patient with a long- term condition and who is in the end of life stage of their journey.
The first IPs were issued at the beginning of October 2008 and the pilot is expected to continue until March 2010. Clinicians who currently issue IPs include community nurses, community matrons, specialist nurses and Macmillan nurses.
The aim is to use the IP template as a framework for end of life discussions and part of the evaluation – being conducted by Nottingham University early in 2009 – will involve working with clinicians to understand if this has changed their practice. Key to this is supporting patients and carers to make informed decisions and choices.
The pilot will also be working with local end of life teams to ensure they are able to take this forward in the longer term.
Mid Trent Local Cancer Network identified the need for an end of life care IP after being involved in a wider national pilot of IPs across four clinical pathways.
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