Major expansion to palliative care service

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6 women smiling, standing in a group in front of artwork
The Pop-Up Palliative Care team (from left): Charlene McCall, Kate Richardson, Vesta Sexton, Megan Lui, Kirsten Standage, Lucy Burke.

Summary

  • Pop-Up Palliative Care team will add 3 staff members, including new on-country Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers.
  • Recruitment will begin in the coming weeks.

An award-winning palliative care service which supports people across the Torres Strait, Cape York and Northern Peninsula Area has received a funding boost to bring care even closer to home.

The Torres and Cape Hospital and Health Service’s Pop-Up Palliative Care team will add a further three staff members to its team, including two new on-country Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers.

The additional staff come after a funding boost of $1.4 million over four years by the State Government to support the growth in demand.

The Torres and Cape HHS initially launched the Pop-Up Palliative Care team in 2021 and the service was named as a finalist in the National Palliative Care Awards this year.

Palliative Care Clinical Nurse Consultant Charlene McCall said the new health workers would be based in both the Torres Strait and Cape York regions and will travel directly to support terminally ill patients and their families.

She said the extra positions would bring their service to 10 full time staff which includes nurses, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers, a social worker, an occupational therapist and administration staff.

“The main thing we want to achieve is to assist people to get home and be with their families in the last stages of their life,” she said.

“Our model of care is based on a lot of community consultation. We meet with families, talk through options, and provide them with as much support as we can.

“We are so excited by the growth of our service and the dignity and continuously improving care we are able to give people in our remote communities.”

Torres and Cape HHS Executive Director Allied Health Amanda Wilson said the additional staff would mean half of the positions in the service were identified Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander.

“Our health service is committed to providing and increasing opportunities for First Nations people who want to pursue a career in the health sector,” she said.

“Palliative care and the death of a loved one can be a very emotional time for families and we understand the importance of offering our services in a culturally sensitive way.”

Recruitment for the new positions is due to begin in the coming weeks.

For details visit palliative care services and keep an eye on our current job vacancies.