Palliative Care NSW has welcomed news the sector will receive dozens of new nurses, training for hundreds of staff and better resourced end-of-life care in regional communities throughout the state as part of a record $100 million spend.
Thirty dedicated palliative care nursing positions will be created and an additional six palliative care nurses and two specialists will be assigned to regional and rural areas, NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard announced at Westmead Hospital on Monday.
The funding, part of next week's budget, will also see the rollout over the next four years of palliative care training for 300 health staff and 300 scholarships for regional and rural health staff looking to enhance palliative skills.
The package was praised by Palliative Care NSW president Therese Smeal, who said regional and remote parts of the state will be major beneficiaries.
She also praised plans to extend palliative care training to other health clinicians, particularly pharmacists.
"Caring for someone dying at home is multidisciplinary," she said.
"It's nursing, medical, pharmacy. Those would be the first clinicians involved in that care."
But, Ms Smeal said, even with the correct scripts many families struggle to find a pharmacist that stocks the right amount of drugs needed to provide end-of-life care at home.
She said many families and community palliative care workers also report being queried about their patient's scripts, which often contain high doses of strictly controlled drugs like morphine.
"That comes back to awareness and education," she said.
"(Pharmacists) are really a vital part because there are times when community palliative care specialists can't access medications in a timely manner ... and (patients) end up back in hospital."
Community-based services allowing people to die in their homes and communities will also be boosted, Mr Hazzard said.
"About 70 per cent of us generally say we'd like to pass away at home. In reality, about 70 per cent of us currently pass away in hospitals and nursing homes," he said.
One of the challenges for improving palliative care in the regions was filling the positions but Mr Hazzard urged those already working in understaffed communities to take up the training opportunities.
"Doing this extra training, taking up the scholarships the government has offered would be very, very productive for them," he said.
"Working with palliative care specialists and nurses, they all reported that there's a great reward in assisting people in what often can be the most difficult part of their lives - passing away."
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data last month showed palliative care hospitalisations growing faster than all others.
The 19 per cent increase between 2010/11 and 2014/15 compared to 15 per cent for hospitalisations for all reasons over the same period.
