Issues for palliative care in rural Australia

A project funded by the Commonwealth Government's National Palliative Care Program examined rural (non remote) palliative care services in eight rural regions of Australia with the aim of identifying sound service delivery models. The research methodology included, development of a palliative care service baseline, postal survey of all services in the selected regions followed by field examinations, and section of four regions for in depth analysis using interviews and group sessions with medical practitioners, clinicians, former carers and service managers. The research established that patients and carers want palliative care services to first address symptom management and pain control. The service should then place experienced care as the next highest priority, in conjunction with the provision of family supports. Service models should aim to deliver services in the home or in environments which are home-like and located close to families. Research has demonstrated that even the smallest hospitals can incorporate a palliative care unit. Palliative care service planning in rural areas needs to make a distinction between the main provincial city in the region and the rural hinterland as different planning approaches will often apply. Palliative care teams should vary according to the nature of the service catchment. Particular attention should be given to the method of providing palliative care nursing expertise in a region. This project concluded that when active treatment is no longer beneficial, palliative services in rural regions are commonly of a high quality, although access to tertiary services remains as a limitation during the pre-palliative treatment phase.