Authors
- Joshua Cohen1,
- Carmen Sanchez1
- Calvary Health Care Kogarah1
2018
Excerpt
Joshua Cohen is a palliative care nurse practitioner working at Calvary Health Care Kogarah in Sydney. Joshua’s two passions is the delivery of specialist palliative care into residential aged care, trying to fill the gap both in clinical care and service provision in his role as a nurse practitioner; and teaching palliative care nursing throughout Asia when the opportunity arises. Josh has been working in palliative care for over a decade completing his Masters in Palliative Care at Flinders University in 2013, followed by the completion of his Master of Nursing, Nurse Practitioner at the University of Sydney IN 2017
Significance
Sustainable specialist palliative care nurse practitioner (NP) interventions into residential aged care (RAC) remains a challenging business. It is clear from the literature that specialist, consultative palliative care is both necessary and a critical part of patient care within RAC. NPs must look for a gap in clinical need and consider novel approaches to care that are within their scope of practice.
Goals or Problem
To find a sustainable NP model of care into RAC that utilises the appropriate scope of practice for the NP within a metropolitan community palliative team.
Approach
Review of the literature to establish the evidence concerning palliative care NP interventions into RAC.
To pursue a funding application to seek the financial commitment required from the Health Service to support a second palliative care nurse practitioner position within a specialist community palliative service.
To facilitate a ‘model of care’ workshop held within the organisation to discuss the NP role in the delivery of clinical care to RAC.
Outcomes
To implement the Palliative Care Needs Round (Chapman et al. 2016) in RAC; to be an example of model of care translation from one Australian State, ACT, to another, NSW.
Implications for practice
Being able to translate evidence into clinical practice in a timely, effective way that engages the organisation and provides best outcome for consumers is ideal practice. To be able to effectively “fill the gap” as a nurse practitioner is critical to the role’s success. Being able to do both at the same time becomes an example worth documenting from which others can learn.
Conclusion
Awareness and review of the current literature concerning specialist palliative care NP interventions in RAC can be an effective way of justifying changes to clinical practice within a community palliative team.
Significance
Sustainable specialist palliative care nurse practitioner (NP) interventions into residential aged care (RAC) remains a challenging business. It is clear from the literature that specialist, consultative palliative care is both necessary and a critical part of patient care within RAC. NPs must look for a gap in clinical need and consider novel approaches to care that are within their scope of practice.
Goals or Problem
To find a sustainable NP model of care into RAC that utilises the appropriate scope of practice for the NP within a metropolitan community palliative team.
Approach
Review of the literature to establish the evidence concerning palliative care NP interventions into RAC.
To pursue a funding application to seek the financial commitment required from the Health Service to support a second palliative care nurse practitioner position within a specialist community palliative service.
To facilitate a ‘model of care’ workshop held within the organisation to discuss the NP role in the delivery of clinical care to RAC.
Outcomes
To implement the Palliative Care Needs Round (Chapman et al. 2016) in RAC; to be an example of model of care translation from one Australian State, ACT, to another, NSW.
Implications for practice
Being able to translate evidence into clinical practice in a timely, effective way that engages the organisation and provides best outcome for consumers is ideal practice. To be able to effectively “fill the gap” as a nurse practitioner is critical to the role’s success. Being able to do both at the same time becomes an example worth documenting from which others can learn.
Conclusion
Awareness and review of the current literature concerning specialist palliative care NP interventions in RAC can be an effective way of justifying changes to clinical practice within a community palliative team.