Comfort Care Plans
What is a comfort nursing care plan?
Comfort care, also referred to as palliative, end-of-life, or holistic care is a type of care plan that exists to transition a person from their palliative journey into a comfortable end of life. The main focus of a comfort care plan is to ensure the person’s physical, emotional, and spiritual needs are taken care of so that they may remain comfortable, pain-free, and emotionally supported as they approach the end of their life. Because at Helping Hands we have our own team of nurses working for us, we can offer bespoke, fully managed comfort nursing care support directly in the comfort of your own home, whether it’s a few hours a week or around the clock.
Why is a comfort care plan important?
Having been diagnosed with a life-limiting condition, therapies and treatments are often offered while a person is on their palliative care journey. While not a cure, treatments and therapies will often keep symptoms at bay for as long as possible, which can help the person to maintain a quality of life for an extended period of time before their condition becomes untreatable. Even when facing end of life, most people wish to know that they can achieve a ‘quality death’ and that their wishes for the end of their life will be respected and detailed in their care plan.
Do I need a need a care plan for comfort care?
Whether you have spent time in hospital, or you’ve been receiving palliative care support at home, your comfort care plan is vital so that you’ll always receive the standard of care best suited to you. Your support plan from hospital or hospice care can been built upon and personalised when you return home for your comfort care, and Helping Hands will always carry out a comprehensive assessment when we begin to care for you. Having a comfort care plan in place means that your care will always be personalised to you and you’ll be able to spend your days making memories with the people you love. We have our own nursing team at Helping Hands who will manage your comfort and nursing care package, meaning that you’ll always be in the hands of especially trained carers who always have your best interest at heart.
What should a good comfort care plan include?
We really believe that you should be in charge of your own care at all times, receiving person-centred, holistic support that’s built around you. You should always be allowed to live, and pass away, in the place that you wish and with the people around you that matter the most, and by remaining in your own home for your palliative and end-of-life care you get to direct things as you wish. When you have visiting or live-in care from us, we really get to know you and your condition, and by building on the way you’re already receiving care from the wider healthcare team in your area, we’ll ensure your care is always built around you. Your comfort nursing care plan should also include information, such as:
Physical needs
This will include your personal care and mobility support, plus medication management, nutrition, and helping you to access the community while you’re still able to.
Emotional and spiritual needs
Emotional support could be for both the person and their loved ones, while spiritual needs focus on the soul, whether that’s religious wishes or belief in the cosmic and divine.
How can I create a plan that works for me?
As your palliative care journey progresses, you and your loved ones may be unsure whether you should choose hospice care or remain living at home. While both approaches have their benefits, by receiving your care in the familiar surroundings of your own home you retain complete control over how your care progresses, receiving one-to-one support with loved ones and pets nearby.
While hospice care is undoubtedly the ideal solution for some people, if you have lived in your home for a long time and don’t want to be separated from partners or family who still live there, nothing compares to comfort care at home. The relaxed formality of hospice or care homes can be replaced by the intimate surroundings of your own home, with as many people as you want sitting around your bed. If you’re an animal lover you’ll want your furry friends close by too, which is never a problem if you’re in your own home.
| Comfort Care at Home | Hospice Care |
| Can begin from the time of diagnosis so that support can be ongoing throughout | Cannot usually begin until the person is near the end of their palliative care journey |
| Can be delivered in the person’s own home alongside therapies and treatments | Will usually commence when no more therapies or treatments are possible |
| Focuses on the holistic ‘whole-person’ approach, ensuring they get to live as they wish | Concentrates on keeping the person comfortable and pain-free only |
How our carers can help
By talking to Helping Hands early in your palliative care journey we can help you to put the measures in place that will ensure your continued quality of life. Whether that’s accompanying you to medical appointments or taking you for days out in the local area we’ll do whatever we can to make your days feel like you’ve got the most out of them. And if you’ve got a ‘bucket list’ of things you want to achieve before the end of your life, we’ll do all we can to make those happen too.
It’s vital to have a comprehensive care plan in place so that your needs and wishes are always followed to the letter, and also because it makes reviewing your care against established goals easier to measure. Our visiting and live-in care and support is tailored to your life and your goals; moulded to your support plan while being flexible enough to change as your condition does.
Fully regulated by the CQC / CIW
All of our care plans for comfort care and our exceptional services are fully regulated by the Care Quality Commission and the Care Inspectorate Wales, meaning that any nursing care plan for safety and comfort that we devise for you will be managed and evaluated regularly, by us and also as part of your wider healthcare team, where appropriate.
Therefore, you and your loved ones can be fully reassured that the comfort care you receive from us will be flexible enough to help you remain in control of your living, and your passing.
