Between 21 and 23 May, the National Accreditation Manager was able to pay a visit to five sites in the Western Cape. Specifically in and around Cape Town.
The role of Accreditation Manager often takes me away from my own secure spaces, spaces of love and support. However, I am exposed to so many kind and generous people in the palliative care environment.
We truly are a community of care, and I commend you to one another.
Living Hope
Living Hope is a Palliative Care Centre in Kommetjie and has a wide number and range of programmes that they offer to the various communities that they serve. I was able to spend time at their In-Patient Unit with Sr Margaret.
Living Hope show wonderful enthusiasm and commitment to the accreditation process and we are optimistic that they will advance their star rating in the next few months and possibly have a COHSASA survey before the end of the year.
Not every programme that Living Hope offers is a Palliative Care programme, but it was once again brought home to me the importance of having an impact in our communities. When we unpack the value of the Accreditation programme, we often speak of patients (users), payers (funders) and communities (potential users and supporters). We need to guard against becoming too insular and removed from the communities that often have a great impact on our sustainability. Palliative care is about connections and Living Hope embodies this through various programmes that connect to their communities.
St Joseph’s Intermediary Paediatric Care
St Joseph’s celebrates its 90th anniversary this year and has had a long history of impact and service to the children in the Western Cape. I was fortunate to spend time at this amazing facility and to walk through the wards and interact with some of the children.
The leadership at St. Joseph’s are considering membership of the APCC as a strategic development. No decisions on this membership have been made and I look forward to continued engagement with them.
The shortage of specialised Paediatric Palliative Care programmes is noted, and we should consider additional support to those programmes who have this as a focal area.
Helderberg Society for the Aged
Helderberg Society for the Aged (HSFA) is one of the first aged care facilities that have become members of the APCC and they achieved a 1-star status during the DGMT project in 2023.
The team at HSFA have made wonderful progress in preparing their Organisational Self-Assessment and the Accreditation Committee is looking forward to receiving their documents and supporting evidence.
A growing number of patients and potential patients are the elderly and palliative care is uniquely suited to provide care to the elderly and frail in a diverse range of settings. HSFA provides an example of aged care in a residential facility, and we can begin to learn from them.
Robin Trust
Robin Trust is another organisation in the Cape Metro with a wide range of services including care for patients with dementia. They have a well-established training programme including equipping students with the QCTO Home-Based Care course (NQF level 2). Robin Trust is exploring options for membership with the APCC in particular to enhance the in-community care that they provide. This relationship is in its early days and will unfold over time.
Helderberg Hospice
Helderberg Hospice is one of our Centres of Palliative Excellence having been continuously accredited by COHSASA since 2006.
The purpose of my visit to Helderberg Hospice was less to provide mentorship as it was to receive mentorship that I can then share with other members. One of the main reasons was to look for examples of best practice policies which can be shared on the APCC website, and we encourage all our members to regularly visit this website which has a wealth of information. If you notice any gaps or errors, please let me know (or email: nicole@mango-omc.com).
Models of care
As palliative care expands, different models of care need to be explored. Member organisations are encouraged to review the way in which care is provided to ensure that their programmes are sustainable over the long term. There is a panel discussion at the Palliative Care Conference (www.pcconference.co.za) on different models of care and we encourage members to attend.
Not so many years ago there was course on offer entitled, Palliative Care for the Aged – or something along these lines. It may well be time to revive this course, as we believe the call and need for palliative care in aged care settings will expand over the short term. This also presents opportunities for our members to look at different models of care and possibly, some alternative income streams.
Dementia patients
The care of patients with dementia remains a challenge and most of our members are probably not capacitated to provide dementia specific care. Dementia care is also resource intensive. However, dementia patients can benefit from palliative care interventions, and we strongly encourage members to partner with those organisations who do provide care (at home or in facilities) for dementia patients.