Over 130,000 people die each year in Australia and half of those are seen to be expected deaths. Palliative care is the active and specialist support and treatment of people with an illness that can not be cured.

Palliative care is provided in many settings and by many different health professionals. Within a framework looking at the needs of the whole Australian population, specialist palliative care services provide care to those patients whose needs exceed the capacity and resources of the primary care providers.

Specialist palliative care services act as direct provider of care as well as being a resource and support for primary care providers. Most people living with a terminal illness will have an occasional or intermittent involvement with a specialist palliative care service. These services provide assistance as needed in association with primary care providers. For a smaller group of patients and carers with symptoms needing careful management, there may be the continuing involvement of a specialist team.
 
This approach to palliative care service provision is outlined in a Palliative Care Australia document A Guide to Palliative Care Service Development: A population based approach.

This page was created on 22 April 2008 and is due for review in April 2010.