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Home Palliative Care in the United Kingdom and Europe

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Hospice Palliative Home Care and Bereavement Support

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Abstract

Palliative home care is an essential component of palliative care provision across the continent of Europe. However, the precise ways in which that care is structured and delivered are highly variable, due to differences in history, development, resources, national health priorities and culture. The United Kingdom is a case in point with each of the four component countries having its own national palliative care strategy. Nevertheless, there are common themes evident, both across the United Kingdom and across Europe, not least a drive towards greater integration and co-ordination of palliative home care services. Palliative home care in Europe is provided by a combination of specialist and non-specialist providers. Non-specialist services are most commonly provided by General Practitioners (family doctors), community nurses and other statutory or government-funded teams and individuals. Specialist services may also be centrally funded or may be provided by independent or third sector organisations. Some of the challenges facing palliative home care in Europe include increasing services to meet demand, continuously improving quality of provision and breaking down barriers that prevent some groups from receiving the care they need.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Health and Life Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Paisley, Scotland

    Elaine Stevens

  2. Ardgowan Hospice, Greenock, Scotland

    Stuart Milligan

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  1. Elaine Stevens
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  2. Stuart Milligan
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Correspondence to Elaine Stevens .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. College of Nursing, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada

    Lorraine Holtslander

  2. College of Nursing, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada

    Shelley Peacock

  3. College of Nursing, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada

    Jill Bally

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Stevens, E., Milligan, S. (2019). Home Palliative Care in the United Kingdom and Europe. In: Holtslander, L., Peacock, S., Bally, J. (eds) Hospice Palliative Home Care and Bereavement Support. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19535-9_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19535-9_4

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-19534-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-19535-9

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