The Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS) provide specialist advice to complex patients, working closely with the Consultants in Palliative Medicine. They support patients and families through face to face assessment and review in outpatients, at home or virtually.
They provide holistic assessment, symptom management, psychosocial support and liaison with other health professionals involved in the patient’s care working closely with GPs, Community Nurses, Care Homes and specialist services.

Specialist palliative care telephone support line

Who can access the Telephone Support Line?

The Specialist Palliative Care Telephone Support Line is an advice line available 24 hours, 7 days a week to provide advice to patients, families and health and social care professionals regarding unmet palliative care needs for patients at home or in a care setting that is their home.

The Telephone Support Line can be contacted for specialist palliative care advice whether it’s for a patient facing a new symptom, a carer worried about giving the correct dosage of pain relief or a doctor with a query, the Telephone Support Line is there to support everyone in our catchment area.

You can reach the Telephone Support Line on 07967 724731.

Key features:

• A dedicated telephone advice line for people living and working in Hastings and Rother

• One easy to remember number

• We understand this can be a difficult time, and it’s why we’re here for you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

• Provides information, guidance, signposting and support to patients and their families and carers in the last years of their life

Get advice and support on:

• Managing symptoms such as pain, nausea, vomiting and restlessness

• Supporting the person who is ill

• Supporting distressed family members

• Maintaining your own wellbeing as a carer for someone with palliative care or end of life needs

• Making a referral to Hospice services such as Wellbeing, Hospice Outreach, Bereavement & Spiritual Support Service, Rehabilitation team and the In-Patient Unit

• If needed, we will speak with the teams from East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust (ESHT) about visits for stat (one-off) injections from Just in Case Medication or syringe pump management. We will try to give you an expected response time when we say we will make a referral and we will ask the teams to update you directly regarding their visit.

Please be aware that:

• Calls may be taken by our advice and support staff, a Senior Registered Nurse or a Doctor

• We make a record of all calls including general or nursing enquiries

• Advice given will be based on the information provided by the caller

• When the query is about an existing patient we update their records accordingly

• We will only give prescribing advice directly to the prescriber

• Calls may be recorded for training and monitoring purposes

• Your query may be answered immediately or we may need further information in order to help you and we will ring you back

• There are times when the line may be busy, if you leave a message we will call you back.

All patient information is secure and confidential. If needed, the information may be shared with other professionals involved in your care. For further information see our privacy notice stmichaelshospice.com/privacy-notice

*Please note that the 24/7 Advice and Support Line team are not able to directly provide counselling.