Palliative Care for Community

What is Palliative Care?

Palliative care is person and family-centred care provided for a person living with a life-limiting disease and their families and/or carers for whom the primary goal is to optimise the quality of life.

Palliative care support is available in the region at home, residential aged care homes, in a hospital or hospice.

Palliative care strives to recognise and respect the diverse needs of people, their values, beliefs, cultural and spiritual practices to facilitate ‘a good death’.

Primary healthcare is a central part of community health services in NSW. End of life and palliative care is best managed when it is integrated and provided in partnership with the person’s general practitioner and primary healthcare providers.

NSW Health Palliative Care Aslan

After diagnosis with a life limiting illness

Needing assistance

Preparing for end of life

After death

After diagnosis with a life limiting illness

Early referral to palliative care can often prolong life and supports a better quality of life. People may be referred to palliative care while still undergoing treatment to extend life.

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MLHD referral

MLHD staff will provide you with over the phone support and clinical advice to ensure you receive the right services along your health journey.

Palliative Care Resource Booklet

A guide to understanding your local palliative care system and support services.

Demystifying palliative care and dying for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

Animation series.

Our Mob and Cancer

Information about cancer, including cancer types, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, living with cancer, finding support, clinical trials and much more.

Palliative Care Australia - For patients

Helping you manage your illness, particularly pain and symptoms so you can continue to live life as well as you can while dealing with your illness.

Dementia Australia

The national peak body for people impacted by dementia in Australia.

NSW Health – Voluntary assisted dying in NSW

Information on voluntary assisted dying in NSW

Palliative care posters

Demystifying palliative care.

Palliative Care Australia - Discussion starters

These resources have been developed to help Australians work out what’s right for them if they were to become very sick or at the end of their lives.

Palliative Care: Community Support Services for First Nations

Community support services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families in the Murrumbidgee.

Needing assistance

The progression of a life limiting illness may vary at times which may mean additional practical assistance is required. There are a lot of resources available to provide help but you may not know that they even exist. Getting extra help doesn’t mean ‘giving up’ or that carers can’t provide care.

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MLHD Palliative Care Service

Services may include social workers, dietitians, speech pathologists, volunteer support or pastoral care.

Self Care for Carers: Self Care Plan

Self-care is any action that takes care of you so that you can continue to care for your loved one.

Who cares for the carer?

A pocket guide for First Nations people.

Planning a successful in-home respite visit

A simple guide developed to support carers in arranging an in-home respite visit.

Latrobe University - Home Support Plan

A tool to help ensure you remain connected to your social support networks during extended periods of illness.

CareSearch

When you have a life-limiting illness there are things to consider, this could be for you or for those around you. There is information here that can help in making informed choices.

Palliative Care Australia - For carers

Caring for someone who is dying is an individual commitment and can be a rich, rewarding and challenging experience.

NSW Health - After hours palliative care helpline

Provides professional health information, support and advice for people who receive palliative care, their carers, parents, families and health professionals during the after hours period.

Carer Gateway - Services and support

A range of free services and support just for carers including young carers.

Department of Veterans Affairs - Aged care support and services

A range of care services that can help you stay in your home or support your return home after a hospital stay.

Dementia Australia - Resources

Information and ideas for carers, family members and friends including activities for people living with dementia, managing changes in communication, and taking care of yourself.

My Aged Care

Your starting point to access government-funded aged care services.

ACON - Palliative care support

This toolkit attempts to make it easier to open conversations about death and dying for the LGBTQ+ community.

Palliative Care NSW - LGBTQ+ Health and Palliative Care toolkit

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and gender diverse people, and queer people (LGBTQ people) are at increased risk of some chronic diseases and cancers.

Palliative Care NSW - Palliative Caring booklet

Information for families and carers who are caring for a person with a life-limiting illness or condition.

Palliative Care Australia - Learn more about pain and pain management

Pain often accompanies cancer and other progressive diseases and it can affect all aspects of your life- psychological, emotional and spiritual.

Resources

Further resources to assist you.

Medicines List

A medicines list can be a useful way to keep all the information about your medicines together.

Preparing for end of life

There are choices available to you about what happens at end of life and the place that you feel most comfortable to die. Discuss your end of life wishes with your family/family of choice and your health care team.

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Advance Care Plans vs Advance Care Directives

When someone is diagnosed with a life-limiting condition, knowing the difference between these two can make a big impact on future care.

CareSearch

When you have a life-limiting illness there are things to consider, this could be for you or for those around you. There is information here that can help in making informed choices.

Palliative Care Australia - Discussion starters

These resources have been developed to help Australians work out what’s right for them if they were to become very sick or at the end of their lives.

Advance Care Planning Australia

Advance Care Planning is a voluntary process of planning for future health and personal care whereby a person makes their beliefs, values and preferences known so they can be used to guide future decision-making.

Advance Care Planning Australia - Other languages

Information about advance care planning is also available in other languages.

NSW Health - Making an Advance Care Directive

Having an Advance Care Directive will make it easier for your loved ones and health staff if they need to make decisions for you.

Uploading your Advanced Care Plan to My Health Record

Find out what an advance care plan is and how to upload an advance care plan through myGov.

Service NSW - Appoint an Enduring Guardian

An Enduring Guardian is someone you appoint to make lifestyle and health decisions on your behalf, when you don't have the capacity to make them for yourself.

NSW Trustee and Guardian - Enduring Power of Attorney and General Power of Attorney

Enduring Power of Attorney is a legal document that allows you to appoint a person(s) to manage financial and legal decisions on your behalf and continues even if you lose the ability to make decisions for yourself.

Palliative Care Australia - The dying process

Palliative Care Australia information for carers brochure.

After death

Grief is a natural response to any loss. That loss might be a death, or it might be for the loss of the person as you knew them. If you’re grieving, remember that you’re not alone and help is available.

Grief is an individual experience, and there is no right way or set time to grieve. Even if the death was expected, you may still feel sad, fearful or panicky. It’s also normal to feel relief, or to feel no emotions at all. There is no right or wrong way to feel. (Carer Gateway 2024)

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Sydney Local Health District - Bereavement information

What to do first, what to do in the first five days, how to organise a funeral or memorial service, important information if the person died in hospital or at home.

Service NSW - Death and bereavement

How to notify government organisations and others and complete necessary tasks after someone has died. Information about financial and other support available.