Our End of Life Services

Part of Nicholas Jame’s commitment to enhancing and developing our services is our dedication to the End of Life and the Palliative Care services that we offer within our homes.

This includes our commitment to the Gold Standards Framework and the publication of our End of Life Guide setting out our services and commitment to providing meaningful and person centred End of Life/Palliative Care Services.

Gold Standards Frameworks

Part of our commitment to providing outstanding Palliative and End of Life services within our homes is our recent commitment to The Gold Standards Frame Work. GSFCH is recommended as an example of ‘best practice’ by many government and professional organisations including CQC. It aims to build on the good work already present in our homes, to develop the very best quality of care for residents in the last years of life – aiming for a ‘gold standard’ of care.

Originally the Gold Standards Framework was developed in Primary Care for GP’s and District Nursing teams. The framework has been found to greatly benefit patients, families and staff by improving the organisation, us as a provider and the quality of care provided. The framework is used by many care homes, GP practices, hospitals and other organisations across the UK.

Excitedly as a group we are currently in the initial stages of the GSFCH programme. Currently our teams are undertaking training, consultation and information days with residents and families setting out how they will deliver the programme within our Nursing and Residential Homes.

One of the key focuses of the programme is the proposal to have really good discussions with all residents; listening to their needs, wishes and preferences ensuring better planning and communication with everyone. This approach called Advanced Care planning will enable us to focus on meaningful person centred End of Life Care.

As a group we are committed to providing the best End of Life and Palliative services as possible and Nicholas James becoming involved in The Gold Standards Framework is only one part of this commitment.

End of Life Guide

As a provider with a progressive focus we continue to look to enhance and develop our services. Part of how we recognise areas where our services could be developed is through consultations and quality surveys. Our senior management teams consult with our home managers who give them feedback from residents, loved ones and staff.

Last year we decided to create our very own Nicholas James End of Life Guide. The guide gives an overall insight in to the End of Life services we provide within our Nursing, Residential and Learning Disability Homes. In the opening section of the guide we set out our standards of End of Life Care that our residents can expect in our homes. The guide also looks at End of Life preferences; as it is not always an easy subject for loved ones to talk to each other about. Our staff have undertaken Palliative and End of Life Training and have attended Pilgrims Hospice Training and have the tools to be able to assist our residents and their loved ones in engaging and starting those sensitive conversations.

We didn’t just want to set out the services we offer but we wanted the guide to be an informative and useful resource for residents and their loved ones. Dying and death are sensitive and sometimes upsetting subject which isn’t often spoken about. What is important to us is that our services are person centred and by making the topic of death and dying more accessible and more comfortable to talk about enables us to make our services holistically person centred for all involved.

It is in these sections of the guide that we specifically detail the end stages of dementia and how the disease progresses and some of the stages which a person may go through.

Thoughtfully written with the advice of our experienced senior nursing management team, this section of the guide is aimed at giving families an insight as to what may happen during the final moments of their loved ones life and how our homes and teams respond to them to meet their needs.We felt it was important that this section of the guide be honest and enable our residents loved ones to be prepared and informed about this stage of their loved ones journey.

The guide then goes on to give advice and information on what happens after their loved one passes away and useful information, such as who to contact. Importantly the guide also incorporates the current End of Life Core Skill Education and Training framework guidelines from NHS Education England, Skills for Health and Skills for Care. We have also taken guidance from the Alzheimer’s Society and Macmillan Cancer Support End of Life Fact Sheets.

Download Guide
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