The hospice understand that not all patients wish to go into the Hospice to be cared for hence the valuable service that the Hospice at Home Team can offer to you should you choose to remain at home, in your own surroundings.

The Hospice at Home Team's main aim is to help patients who choose to remain at home during their illness to be cared for at home. They maintain the same ethos of care as delivered by Cransley Hospice: to maintain dignity, assist in controlling symptoms and enable patients to make decisions about their care.

The Hospice at Home Team work in partnership with General Practitioners, District Nurses and other health and social services, although the patient's own GP and District Nurse remain responsible for the overall care at all times.

Care is provided by a team of experienced Clinical Nurse Specialists, Therapists, Registered Nurses and Healthcare Support Workers. All care is planned with you and your family, working closely alongside District Nurses, GP’s and others providing care, to ensure that we are able to meet your needs.

The team offers practical support and nursing skills to patients at home, helping assist other health care professionals in controlling patient symptoms and supporting families.

All staff will be wearing the appropriate PPE when they attend the home visit.  Wherever possible to ensure the safety of our patients, virtual appointments or follow-ups will be agreed with the patient where this is possible.

Clinical Nurse Specialists

Clinical Nurse Specialists are Registered Nurses with specialist knowledge and qualifications in cancer and palliative care. They provide advice on pain control, managment of difficult symptoms and emotional support for patients. They also provide information about your illness and its management, as well as plan your future care.

This service operates Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm.

Therapy Team

This team consists of a Physiotherapist and Occupational Therapists. The Therapy team is based at Cransley Hospice, however the team will offer community teams expert advice or carry out visits to your home if necessary.

The Physiotherapist will aim to help improve your range of movement and promote independence. A large part of the physiotherapists role is to provide non-pharmacological (non drug) management of specific symptoms i.e. fatigue, breathlessness, sweats or pain.

The Occupational Therapy Team will work with you and your family to help reduce the impact of your illness on your every day life through the provision of aids, adaptations and specialist equipment.

This service operates Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm.

Hospice at Home Nursing Team

This team consists of Registered Nurses and Care Assistants who are experienced in end of life care. The team provide nursing care, symptom control and emotional support to facilitate care at home in conjunction with existing community services.  We provide short shifts on an ad-hoc basis prioritising patients who need us most.

The aims of this service are:

• To assist with end of life care for you should you choose to stay in your own home (including care homes or other long-term care facilities)
• To support rapid discharge from hospice for patients who would prefer to be at home in the last days of life.
• Crisis intervention to avoid inappropriate admission in the last days of life.

This service operates Monday to Friday.  Referrals are accepted between 8.30am to 4.30pm

During 2015/16 Cransley Hospice Trust together with Cynthia Spencer Hospice Trust have significantly increased the funding provided to the Hospice at Home Team. This was to ensure more care could be provided to more patients and their families.

Additional funding has  been provided for extra Registered Nurses and Healthcare Assistants. This has increased the number of shifts of care that we can provide as well as the number of patients we are able to care for in their own homes.