What is palliative care?
When someone has a life-threatening condition that cannot be cured, palliative care is centred around helping the person live well with their condition through an active and holistic approach. This helps to manage symptoms as well as providing psychological, social and spiritual support to achieve the best quality of life for the person and those closest to them.
The palliative care journey can be long or short and varies from one person to another. As the person reaches the end of their life, additional care and support may be required.
You can find more information on palliative care, such as managing symptoms, grief support and planning for end of life care on the NHS inform website. There is also more information and resources available through the Scottish Partnership for Palliative Care.
To find out what support and services are available in your area search Scotland's Service Directory for names, addresses, opening times and details of NHS services.
Our commitment to palliative care
In Ayrshire, we use the MAGICE model approach to providing good quality palliative care to ensure that regardless of where you live, you experience the same level of care:
M Mindful that good quality palliative care needs
A Assessment and
G Great conversations that are
I Important to identify people early so that they have a
C Care plan and know how to communicate with their Care Co-ordinator to
E Enable excellence in end of life care and support in bereavement
Making a care plan for the future
Anticipatory Care Planning (ACP) is about thinking ahead and being in control of changes in your health conditions. Anyone of any age may benefit from having a plan, however, people with more complex needs are likely to benefit most from ACP as it ensures that their support is informed by their choices and tailored to their needs. A plan can be started at any time by letting your health team know or your health team might suggest making a plan to you. Your health team will work with you to identify what matters most to you and will help you make an informed choice about the care you want to receive.
Find out more information about the ACP mobile app on the NHS inform website.
You can also find out more about Anticipatory Care Planning in East Ayrshire and what it involves by watching the video below: