OP-13 Findings from the phase 1 evaluation of Marie Curie’s Lothian enhanced hospice care at home service

a:2:{s:4:"lang";s:2:"en";s:7:"content";s:2059:"<h3>Introduction</h3> Launched in May 2024, the Lothian Enhanced Hospice Care at Home (EHC{at}H) service provides 4<i>–</i>6 days of 24/7 specialist palliative support in a patient’s home. Patients eligible for the service are living with a palliative illness, wish to be cared for at home/in their care home, and either: Have uncontrolled symptoms which require a daily review Are actively dying and require a daily review Are currently in an IPU setting and wish to be at home but require a daily review <h3>Aims</h3> The service aims to Avoid emergency admission to hospital or hospice Support rapid discharge from IPU settings Enable more people to achieve their preferred place of care and/or death <h3>Methods</h3> Phase 1 of the evaluation of this service, carried out by Marie Curie’s Impact and Evaluation team, included interviews with service users, focus groups with internal staff and a survey of external staff. Thematic analysis of these and available activity data outlined areas of impact, key learnings, and recommendations for the service going forward. <h3>Results</h3> The EHC{at}H service has already prevented 46 acute admissions and supported 5 acute discharges. The service has a profound physical and emotional impact on patients and those supporting them (family and other informal carers). Acute symptoms are managed calmly and professionally, the team enable people to open up about their emotions, and care is person-centred, tailored to the needs of the individual. <h3>Conclusion</h3> The EHC{at}H model is delivering personal and system impact in the Midlothian, City of Edinburgh and West Lothian areas. <h3>Impact</h3> Lothian EHC{at}H relieves acute symptom burden, enables preferred place of care/death, and service users feel relieved, reassured and comforted. Phase 1 of the evaluation highlighted areas for attention and growth, creating a feedback loop for continual service improvement and informing the scaling of the EHC{at}H model within Marie Curie. ";}