It is important to get care and support right for people with a life-limiting condition, who are at the end of life or are bereaved. Health and care services in Redbridge, Waltham Forest and parts of West Essex are looking at how to make sure that people get the care they need and want in the place they want it.
Support for people at end of life often includes medical care – at home, in their care home, in hospital or at a hospice – but it is also important to make things a little easier during the most challenging of times –such as:
- support with finances
- legal processes and wills
- childcare
- understanding of culture and faith
- accessing food
- being comfortable
The people delivering end of life care for people in the boroughs include all parts of the NHS – community services, GPs and Whipps Cross hospital – alongside the councils and charities including local hospices and Marie Curie. They are working together to ask local people about their needs and wants during end of life, to help them build a better support service at this challenging time.
Last year NHS North East London and partners spoke to local people to find out what is important to local people about the compassionate care services they receive. We heard about the things that work well currently, and the things which are not working so well and need to improve. Feedback from this initial listening exercise was used to help clinical staff develop a set of draft service proposals outlining what end of life care services could look like across the boroughs, these service proposals can be found here.
No decisions have yet been made on the future of end of life care provision in Waltham Forest, Redbridge or West Essex.
There is currently a secondary phase of engagement underway to hear a broader range of voices in order to ensure services work in the right way for local people, this engagement will enable previous proposals to be developed and refined ahead of a further consultation process.
Please see below opportunities to currently be involved in the secondary phase of the engagement.