ELIGIBILITY & REFERRAL CRITERIA

Inpatient Unit

Our general eligibility criteria are as follows:
1. The patient has active, progressive and potentially life threatening disease.
2. The patient has unresolved complex needs that cannot be met by the caring team, or it is anticipated that the patient will develop such needs in the very near future.  These needs may be psychological, social, spiritual and/or physical.  Examples may include complicated symptoms, specialised nursing needs, difficult family situations or ethical issues regarding treatment decisions.
3. The patient has recently been assessed by a member of one of the Specialist Palliative Care Teams.

 

Nurse-Led Care

- The patient is over 18 years old.
- The patient is dying, with a prognosis of days to a short number of weeks (up to three weeks).
- The patient (if appropriate) and carers are aware of the prognosis and this and the purpose for admission have been discussed.
- The patient will have made the decision to be admitted with capacity.  If it is felt that the patient may lack capacity an appropriate Mental Capacity Assessment will be carried out and a Best Interest Decision will have been made and documented regarding preferred place of care/death prior to referral.
- DNACPR has been discussed and is in place (must accompany patient on transfer.)
- Patients referred to a Nurse Led bed should not be requiring medical assessment or regular medical intervention i.e. they should be medically stable for discharge if in hospital.
- The patient does not have specialist palliative care needs but chooses the Hospice as preferred place of death.
- The patient (where appropriate) and their carers understand and are agreeable to a Nurse Led approach to care with an emphasis on symptom management and holistic end of life nursing care.
- Non-essential or inappropriate investigations, interventions and medications have been discontinued in discussion with the patient (where able) and their carers.
- The patient’s GP (Consultant if the patient is in hospital) is aware of the referral and is in agreement with it.

 
There will be no restrictions for patients with known infections providing reversible causes have been addressed and appropriate management considered by referring staff and providing side room accommodation is available.

Respite care: 

These beds are offered to people who have active, progressive life-limiting illnesses.
 
Patients do not always need to have been seen recently by a member of the Specialist Palliative Care Team, but we may sometimes request this before accepting a referral if we are not sure that respite care at Overgate is the most appropriate care for the patient.

 

Day Hospice

Referral to Day Hospice does not require recent review by a member of the Specialist Palliative Care Team – patients can be referred by professionals caring for the patient in the community, and the referrals will be considered by the Day Hospice Team.
 
Unfortunately, because of limitations on the transport that can be provided, we are unable to accommodate patients who would require a stretcher or two-man transport.

 

Breath of Fresh Air

The Calderdale Community Respiratory Team is the only team that can refer to this service, and they use structured referral criteria.

 

Time to Think

Anyone with a formal diagnosis of Dementia along with their carer is eligible to use the Time to Think service.
 

Carers Group

This group is for the carers of patients who are currently receiving care from the Inpatient Unit or the Day Hospice.

 

If it is not clear whether your patient meets our criteria we would welcome a phone call to the relevant department to discuss this.  Please feel free to call 01422 379151 and ask for the department you need.