Collaboration is at the heart of hospice care
At Willow Wood Hospice, collaboration isn’t just a word – it’s the foundation for how we work.
Our mission is to lead and deliver high-quality, specialist palliative and end-of-life care, support and education to those in our local community living with a life-limiting illness.
We achieve this through close-knit teamwork that puts our patients and those closest to them at the centre of everything we do.
For years, our dedicated staff have worked closely with the Community Specialist Palliative Care (CSPC) team. This collaboration is more than a partnership – it’s an integrated approach to care.
Every day, nurses, who are part of the CSPC team, from Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust join our daily triage meetings and engage with all of our clinical teams – from Wellbeing Support to Therapy Support.
They provide specialist support in a patient’s home environment, as well as education and support to staff within the local community – such as GPs and district nurses.
Since 2019, the community palliative care and respite teams have made the Hospice their home, while the hospital palliative care team joins us weekly, representing the multidisciplinary team.
This regular interaction enables us to provide holistic care to patients and those closest to them from across our community, ensuring they receive the services and support they need when they need it most.
Zoe Price, on behalf of the Community Specialist Palliative Care team, said: “We carry out joint visits if required and are always liaising with all teams, ensuring a patient receives the right service at the right time.
“We have a close working relationship with the Hospice teams. Daily conversations and communication help make our patients’ experience the most positive it can be during a difficult time.
“We are continually sharing information, sometimes on an ad-hoc basis, which we may not have the opportunity to if we were not in the same environment.”
Rebecca Stimson, Community Services Therapy Lead at the Hospice, commented: “Working collaboratively with the Specialist Palliative Care nurses ensures that the needs of all patients and those closest to them are assessed holistically.
“We work closely with the Specialist Palliative Care nurses and patients are supported by this, as they know their needs are being addressed.”