Year: 2025
Type: conference-paper
Study design: Clinical Trial
Abstract: Background The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) recognises that delivering high quality end of life care within the emergency department is invaluable but challenged by nuances of the environment. A fast-paced, crowded setting can make it difficult to achieve the multi-faceted, holistic approach recommended for patients and families. This project aimed to improve clinical staff confidence in delivering end of life care in the Emergency Department. Methods We introduced ‘End of Life Family Packs’ as a resource for the emergency department using Plan-Do-Study-Act Methodology. These are a plastic folder containing: leaflets on ‘caring for someone at the end of life’ and ‘what to expect when someone is dying’, ‘coping with the loss of a loved one’, chaplaincy, a canteen and free parking voucher and ‘forget me not’ seeds. Our primary outcome measure was staff confidence in delivering end of life care, recorded on a self-reported scale from 1 to 10. Secondary outcomes evaluated staff usage of and opinions on the packs for future PDSA cycles including quantitative and qualitative data. Data was collected via staff questionnaires over a three-day period pre and post intervention. Results Twenty-one respondents completed the pre-intervention questionnaire and nineteen completed the post-intervention questionnaire. Staff confidence in delivering end of life care to patients and families increased from a mean of 6.3 to 7.5 over 3 months. 38.5% of respondents had used a pack in the last two months and 66.7% of respondents voted that the packs had significantly improved their ability to provide end of life care. Conclusion Introduction of ‘End of Life Family Packs’ increased clinical staff confidence in delivering end of life care within the emergency department. An all-in-one pack improves efficiency in accessing resources that help facilitate holistic end of life care for patients and families in a busy clinical environment.
Source: Poster presentations
Authors: Chloe Cobb, Olivia Prescott
Institutions: Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, Royal Bolton Hospital
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4408550845