When you have a serious illness, it can affect your life in many ways.
Palliative care aims to:
- find out how your illness affects you and your family
- plan ways to prevent or manage pain and other problems that affect you
- understand and help with any worries or fears you have because of your illness
- improve your quality of life
Your healthcare team may offer palliative care at any stage of a serious illness. Palliative care is not only for when someone is dying. It can happen at the same time as other medical care.
Having palliative care early in an illness can help you and your family to live as well as possible.
When you may need palliative care
You may need palliative care if you have a serious illness or condition that:
- may get worse over time (progressive)
- cannot be cured
- causes severe problems to your health and in everyday life
- can cause death
The type of care you need depends on how the condition affects your life. The aim is to help you to live as fully and as comfortably as possible.
You do not have to be dying to get palliative care. But palliative care can include end-of-life care.
How palliative care works
When your GP or hospital doctor makes a care plan, they include support for your other needs as well as medical treatment.
They may do a palliative care assessment to:
- understand your needs related to your condition
- plan treatment and practical support to meet your needs
All healthcare professionals can provide palliative care.
Understanding your needs
To understand your palliative care needs, your care team may ask you about:
- your symptoms or problems and how they affect you
- support you can get from people around you
- your home and how well you can continue to do everyday things
- any worries you have about your situation now or for the future
- any mental health difficulties you have
- things that give you strength or that helped you in difficult times
- your wishes for your care or support in the future
They may do this when you get a diagnosis, at regular appointments and if your situation changes.
It can help to give as much information as you can. If your care team understands you and your life, they can recommend the right support. They can also talk to your family or carers if you give permission.
Your needs can change over time or change suddenly. For example, if your symptoms get worse. Ask your GP or hospital doctor who to contact if your situation changes.
Planning practical support
Your GP or hospital doctor will work with you to plan how to meet your needs. This can also include support for your carers or family.
Plans can include:
- ways to control your symptoms or side effects of medicines
- what to do if your symptoms change or suddenly get worse
- who to contact if you need advice or help
- changes to your everyday routine that may help
- counselling or talk therapy
- support for your mental health
- support to record your memories or create positive memories as a family
- creative activities such as art or music
- courses or programmes for people with a long-term health condition and their carers
- bereavement support
They may also help you access other services, such as:
- services to help you at home - nursing services, healthcare assistants or home help
- a medical social worker
- pastoral care - spiritual and religious care for your faith or tradition
- healthcare specialists - for example, physiotherapy or occupational therapy
- specialist palliative care services
Managing common symptoms or difficulties
Your GP or hospital doctor will ask you about your symptoms and plan ways to manage them. Plans can include medicines or changes to your routine.
Common symptoms or difficulties include:
- pain
- shortness of breath
- fatigue - tiredness that does not get better with sleep or rest
- feeling sick (nausea) or getting sick (vomiting)
- changes in appetite
- constipation or other bowel changes
- sleep problems
- mental health difficulties or mood changes
Managing common symptoms or difficulties
Your wishes for your care
Your GP or hospital doctor will ask you about your wishes for your care now and in the future. For example, what treatments you may not want.
They can support you to:
- plan for a time when you cannot make decisions about treatment
- talk to your family or other important people about your wishes
- record your wishes in a document
This is called advance healthcare planning.
Recording wishes for your care
Specialist palliative care teams
Most people can get the palliative care they need through their GP, hospital doctor or other services.
But your GP or hospital doctor may refer you for specialist palliative care if you have:
- many palliative care needs
- more complex palliative care needs
They will tell you when they do this. You can also ask the doctor about specialist palliative care.
Palliative care plans
If you need specialist palliative care, you and the team can make a palliative care plan together. The team may speak with you, your family and the other medical professionals involved in your care.
Palliative care plans can include:
- ways to control your symptoms or side effects of medicines
- counselling or talk therapy
- support to record your memories or create positive memories as a family
- creative arts and complementary therapies - for example, therapeutic massage or aromatherapy
- physiotherapy - helps with staying active, movement or breathing problems
- occupational therapy - provides advice or equipment to help with everyday activities such as washing or dressing
- speech and language therapy - helps if you have problems communicating or swallowing
- support from a dietitian - helps if you have changes to your appetite, how you swallow or your sense of taste
- day services - where you go to a palliative care unit for appointments or activities
- inpatient care - such as a stay in a hospital or hospice to help control your symptoms
- respite care - a short stay in a hospital or hospice
- end-of-life care
- bereavement support - including support for your family and friends
They may also help you access other services, such as:
- services to help you at home - nursing services, healthcare assistants or home help
- a medical social worker
- pastoral care - spiritual and religious care for your faith or tradition
- night nursing services through the Irish Cancer Society or the Irish Hospice Foundation