A hospice on the hill is not the answer
The current focus on acute hospitals and increasing the number of beds in sub-acute care will not deliver quality care at the end of life for all, according to Palliative Care Australia (PCA).
“Focusing solely on place of care is problematic as it fails to recognise the centrality of the individual and of tailoring care to individual needs so people can see the right health professional, at the right time, in the right place,” said Professor Margaret O’Connor, president of PCA.
PCA welcomes the Federal Government’s commitment to making the health system work better.
However, according to PCA, with so much reform covering the health sector from one end to the other, the challenge is to ensure coherence and integration, and to see the outcome of these sometimes disparate reviews in the provision of seamless, coordinated quality care at the end of life regardless of care setting, diagnosis, prognosis or geographical location.
