The Diana community nursing team and paediatric palliative care

This article describes the work of the Diana community nursing teams, a new nurse-led service funded by the Department of Health (DoH) to commemorate the life and work of Diana, Princess of Wales. It identifies paediatric palliative care as an emerging specialty within children's nursing and discusses how children and young people with life-limiting/threatening conditions and their families may benefit from this new service. It is anticipated that the Diana teams will work with existing services such as children's hospitals, outreach services, children's hospices, social services and education and voluntary agencies. A key element of this service will be the ability of Diana team members to work across professional and organizational boundaries to provide a seamless care service and promote the concept of 'joined-up working' (Hyman, 1998). Education in this specialty, preferably multidisciplinary education, is needed so that healthcare professionals in this field can share knowledge, skills and research findings and deliver up-to-date care based on clinical effectiveness.