DUBBO desperately needs more palliative care hospital beds, with only five available and hundreds of residents needing the service.
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Retired palliative care specialist, Dr Yvonne McMaster, believes Dubbo, like many regional cities, should have their palliative care funding increased.
She said there was a need for an increase in permanent trained staff in Dubbo, including a full-time trained palliative care clinical physician, more palliative care specialist nurses, a social worker and an occupational therapist.
The need for such care will increase in the future, with the number of cancer sufferers in the western region rising each year.
Cancer Council NSW community programs co-ordinator for Dubbo and districts, Camilla Barlow, said the risk of developing cancer in NSW was one in two for males and one in three for females by the age of 85 years.
A total of 1511 Western NSW Local Health District residents were diagnosed with cancer in 2009.
Of those diagnosed 889 were male and 612 were female. The estimated number of cancer sufferers will see a 20 per cent rise by 2016, with 1811 people expected to be diagnosed with the disease.
“They’re able to spend their final moments in their home, which is what many prefer to do.”
- Lourdes Hospital health service manager, Alison Loudon.
Palliative treatment varies in different regional centers.
Orange, with a population of about 40,900, has a full-time specialist palliative care physician for four days a week, but Dubbo, with about 42,000 residents does not.Western NSW Local Health District director of allied health, Richard Cheney, said there was one palliative care clinical nurse specialist at Dubbo Hospital and two registered nurses at Lourdes Hospital.
Mr Cheyney said a palliative care clinical nurse consultant was also based at Dubbo Hospital, providing services to the region.
Lourdes Hospital health service manager, Alison Loudon, said palliative care at the hospital was open to anyone who required the services.
But, she said it would be beneficial to the community to openly evaluate the facilities and take action from their responses.
She said Lourdes had five palliative care hospital beds which were assigned on a “needs basis”, but a majority of patients at Dubbo often preferred the inhome palliative care option, which allowed them to remain in their home but still be cared for by a nurse.
“They’re able to spend their final moments in their home, which is what many prefer to do,” she said.
Although the available staff were adequately trained in nursing or had expertise in palliative care, she said “it would be beneficial to the community to evaluate the services based on the needs of the community”. “We need to know what the community thinks and what they need.”
Dr McMaster, has been driving a statewide campaign, Push for Palliative, for an increase in government funding for palliative care services across the state.
She said there was a need for a specialist palliative physician and more specialist nurses in Dubbo.
Dr McMaster appointed Dubbo woman and retired nurse, Barbara O’Brien, as the Dubbo ambassador for the campaign.
Dr McMaster said she believed all patients deserved to die with dignity.
She said Push for Palliative aimed to have a permanent specialist palliative care physician in Dubbo and many more specialised palliative care nurses.
She also hoped to have a social worker and occupational therapist in the city.
“Palliative care is about tailoring the treatment to the individual’s needs,” she said.
“There has to be attention to detail to every patient.”
Dr McMaster said the campaign’s Dubbo Advocacy Group would continue to approach local government representative members for their commitment to push for the need for suitable bed space in both Lourdes Hospital and the refurbished Dubbo Hospital.