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Sharing Current Scottish Practice

Poster Abstracts of the month - March

The SPPC Annual Conference in 2013 featured 36 poster displays, sharing work and research underway across Scotland. Each month, this blog will focus on the content of four of these posters.

This month, we focus on:

  • Developing National Guidelines for Palliative Care
  • Dying Matters... Let's Talk About It! Public Awareness Event
  • End of life care in South Glasgow acute hospitals - the death of the LCP?
  • Enhancing anticipatory care planning through partnership working: the STACCATO approach

Developing National Guidelines for Palliative Care

Author: Blues D (Scottish Partnership for Palliative Care

Summary of work to date to develop national palliative care guidelines.
Includes the methodology and work to date, next steps and information on how the guidelines and supporting resources will be available to users.

Dying Matters… Let's Talk About It! Public Awareness Event

Author(s): Donaghy C; Lindsay J; O'Donnell E; Silver A (St Margaret of Scotland Hospice, Clydebank)

Living and Dying Well, the Scottish Government’s action plan on palliative and end of life care was published in 2008. The action plan recommended the establishment of short life working groups (SLWGs) to take forward developmental work on specific issues.

The remit of SLWG 7 was: ‘to assist, within the context of Living and Dying Well in the development of a truly accessible and cohesive approach to palliative and end of life care across Scotland by: exploring ideas and issues for addressing palliative and end of life care from a public health and health promotion perspective, including public and professional awareness of and attitudes towards death, dying and bereavement; developing recommendations regarding appropriate initiatives to:

- address current low levels of awareness of palliative and end of life care
- address existing societal taboos around discussion of death and dying and
- enable people (patients, families, professionals and the general public) to feel more comfortable in speaking about such issues.’

and so Good Life Good Death Good Grief was born…

Many people are denied the opportunity to discuss and plan for their death and dying. There is limited understanding of the long term effects of bereavement and loss, together with a lack of opportunity to share common experiences. There are potential benefits from a more open approach to these issues, for society, communities and individuals.

To fulfil two points of the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde MCN Action plan -

Point 1: Patient and Carer Preferences and Experiences and Point 2: Introduce Anticipatory Care Planning, St Margaret of Scotland Hospice - Hospice Lecturer, NHSGG&C Health Improvement Senior Officer and two NHSGG&C Anticipatory Care Plan Nurses - developed a steering group to creatively address the remit and recommendations of SLWG 7. Three Public Awareness ‘Dying Matters, Let’s Talk About It’ events were planned for 2013, two of which have been fulfilled. In total 101 people have attended from across public and professional realms all sharing a desire to address the great taboo of death, dying and bereavement.

End of life care in South Glasgow acute hospitals – the death of the LCP?

Author(s): McEvoy K; McKeown A; Walker SHJ; Wotherspoon I (NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde)

Following recent negative publicity and the concerns identified in the Neuberger Report (‘More Care, Less Pathway: A Review of the Liverpool Care Pathway’) we thought it topical and important to review and reflect upon the current practice of end of life care in South Glasgow Hospitals and consider future changes.
A retrospective review was performed of the last 5 expected deaths occurring on all of the medical wards at SGH and VI.

Data collected included evidence of documentation of: recognition of the patient deteriorating by the medical team, patient and family; discussion regarding the initiation of the LCP; whether a DNACPR was in place; the patient’s primary diagnosis; medication review and whether anticipatory medications were prescribed; assessment of the patient’s spiritual needs; and the standard of nursing care received.

The data was analysed by the clinical effectiveness department. 51 audit forms were returned. Areas of good practice and areas needing improvement were highlighted, and comparison was made between the documented end of life care received by patients on the LCP and those who were not.

Enhancing anticipatory care planning through partnership working: the STACCATO approach

Author(s): Bilsland T; Cormie P; Highet G; Medley L; Small D (STACCATO Project Team NHS Borders; Scottish Borders Council)

The poster describes a multi-disciplinary anticipatory care project currently being piloted in the Scottish Borders. STACCATO is the Stow Anticipatory Care Community Assessment Tool, a computer-based tool developed jointly between Health and Social Work, assessing both health and social care needs. It comprises a full assessment of what a person is able to do for themselves and what help they are currently receiving. Using information gained, families will be helped to form a care plan for when the person being assessed is unwell. The aim is to help health and social care staff ensure people are getting all the assistance they need to try and prevent problems and to keep them as independent as possible at home. If people have a relative or friend who helps look after them (their carer) then the assessment will also help to make sure they are receiving the support they need to continue to do this. Early findings from the STACCATO evaluation demonstrate that the project shows great promise and is leading the way in providing integrated, joined up support for the increasing numbers of people living into older age, many with multiple, complex support needs.

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