PEOLC Projects

The TayPEOLC MCN is engaged in supporting a number of local and national palliative & end of life care projects:

Truacanta

In the Autumn of 2019 the MCN began a piece of collaborative work with colleagues in Perth & Kinross HSCP (led by Emma Oram, Learning and Development Officer , Perth and Kinross Council) as part of the Truacanta Project . This is a new Scottish Parternship for Palliative Care (SPPC) initiative to support local communities across Scotland who are interested in taking action to improve people's experiences of death, dying , loss and care. Perth & Kinross was one of 11 shortlisted Truacanta 'communities' and it has recently been announced that our application has been successful. Discussions are underway with colleagues in education and children's services in in Perth & Kinross Council around the MCN proposal which is to work with primary school children to capture their imagination in creating artwork around loss and grief, thinking about how some people are not going to get better, and what this means to them. Through the children’s pictures and words, the aim is to promote human relational care and practical kindness as a key asset in compassionate communities. The artwork can then become a resource to be shared widely for people who have been bereaved. This blog provides further information about this and the other project ideas which will form part of this work':

Truacanta wings

The wings pictured below were designed by some PKAVS young carers and installed by the end of August 2020 in the North Inch Park in the centre of Perth, which is an open space to allow for social distancing. The ‘selfie wings’ formed part of the Recovery Week being hosted by the Perth & Kinross drug and alcohol team – the wings represent renewal and recovery. 

The Scottish Partnership for Palliative Care hosted an Autumn Season Poster Parade. A virtual poster presentation (below), based around Truacanta and Compassionate Communities was submitted by Emma Oram. 

Virtual poster template 2020 EO.pptx

'To Absent Friends' Perthshire

An important aspect of the Truacanta application process was to engage with local communities about our ideas for the project and also importantly to hear from them what they felt it would be good to focus on. The 'To Absent Friends' Perthshire was held on November 15th 2019, in the Perth Civic Hall.

This was a community event, connecting people in Perthshire through shared experiences and stories. There was an exhibition celebrating traditions, photographs, music and poetry of remembrance. Members of the public were invited to pop in for some tea and cake and share memories of someone who is no longer with us and whose life they wanted to celebrate.

Absent Friends Festival - Angus Health & Social Care Partnership

Angus HSCP collaborated with Angus Creative Minds and Forfar Action of Churches Together to host an Absent Friends Festival Event on Thursday 5th November 2020. Here is the link to some information about this and the film which was made             

Other Projects:

Dundee Palliative and End of Life Care Dementia Project (Nov 2017- Nov 2019) 

Dundee is one of a number of sites working with Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) ihub to support the implementation of The Scottish Government’s Strategic Framework for Action on Palliative and End of Life Care which states that everyone who needs palliative care will have access to it by 2021. Their intention was to test the Alzheimer Scotland’s Advanced Dementia Practice Model of Palliative and End of Life Care for people with dementia living in care homes. The model provides a framework so that the care and support given to people with advanced dementia and at the end of life is integrated and comprehensive. Two Care Homes in Dundee took part in the project.  

In addition to these core components for testing the overarching intervention that captured the individual’s wishes was Anticipatory Care Planning and the mechanism to ensure these focussed coordinated conversations about what matters to the person occurred, are reviewed and shared across multiagency services involved to reduce the potential for poor care experiences.

PEOLC FINAL DRAFT Presentation1.pptx

Building on the Best - Improving Palliative Care in Scottish Hospitals

A joint project by the Scottish Partnership for Palliative Care, NHS Boards and Macmillan, Building on the Best is a programme which aims to bring health professionals, patients, carers and families together to improve how hospitals support people who may be approaching the end of their life. Funded by Macmillan Cancer Support, this project has established a national network for hospital palliative care teams which is mapping activities, sharing practice and proving mutual support. Following a call for proposals the project has now funded 12 improvement projects across Scotland. Brief details of the Tayside projects are given here: 

• Vascular Palliative EOLC

Project Lead: Dr Deans Buchanan & Dr Graeme Guthrie 

Aim: To build an integrated Vascular Surgical and Palliative Medicine approach to the management of people with complex vascular disease.

•  Shared Decision Making & Treatment Escalation Planning

Project Lead: Dr Shobhan Thakore (NHS Tayside) 

Aim: By Jan 2022, 80% of patients (with their families if appropriate) admitted to unscheduled acute care in Tayside with palliative or end of life care needs will be involved in decisions regarding their care using a structured Treatment Escalation Plan.

•  Palliative Care for Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Project Lead: Dr Andrew Goudie (NHS Tayside)

Aim: To improve the palliative care delivery for patients hospitalised with an acute exacerbation of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).

Scottish Network for Acute Palliative Care (SNAPC)

The Scottish Network for Acute Palliative Care (SNAPC) connects hospital palliative care teams across ScotlThere is a lot of good work already taking place in Angus by people providing palliative and end of life care across a range of settings. We recognise that there is always more that can be done to improve people’s experiences of palliative and end of life care. This plan aims to improve palliative and end of life care and support in Angus.and to share learning, provide support and facilitate collaboration on issues of common interest.  It is part of the Building on the Best project.

Adult Palliative & End of Life Plan, Angus HSCP 

There is a lot of good work already taking place in Angus by people providing palliative and end of life care across a range of settings. This plan aims to improve palliative and end of life care and support in Angus. This plan outlines how we can ensure that people and their families have the care experience that they expect and that the staff are supported to care. This means that people with palliative and end of life care and support needs should receive the right care, by the right person, at the right time and in the right place.