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End of Life

Your Future Care

When talking to your heath care team you may hear terms like End of Life and Palliative Care. These can be scary terms if you aren't familiar with them.  

What is palliative care?

Palliative care is special care to help you feel as well as possible when you are very ill. You might be offered palliative care if:

  • Your health may not get better
  • You have a serious illness

Palliative care helps with:

  • Pain or other symptoms
  • Side effects from treatment
  • Support for you and your family

Your doctor or nurse will talk to you (and anyone you want to be there) about what this means for you.

You can get palliative care at the same time as other treatments. It helps you feel as comfortable as possible and live as well as you can.

  • Be planned with you, so you know what to expect
  • Be kind and caring
  • Be safe and high quality
  • Think about all your needs—not just your illness
  • Be based on what you want and need
  • Be honest, with people talking to you clearly and on time
  • Happen in the place you choose, if possible
  • Help you stay as independent as you can
  • Be there for you any time—day or night

What is end of life care?

End of life care is special care for people who are near the end of their life.

It helps them:

  • Feel as well as they can
  • Be comfortable
  • Die with dignity and respect
  • For some people, this care might be needed in the last year of life. For others, it might be in the last few months, weeks, or days.

Everyone is different, so it’s not always easy to know when this care will be needed.

Advanced Care Planning and ReSPECT 

 

Your doctors and nurses might want to talk to you about how you want to be looked after in the future. They might use words like Advance Care Planning (ACP) or ReSPECT when they talk to you.

 

Advanced Care Planning is a chat between you and your doctor or carer. You talk about what care you would like in the future. They write it down so people know what you want.

 

ReSPECT stands for Recommended Summary Plan for Emergency Care and Treatment. This is an advanced care planning form that says what care and treatment you would like if you become very ill or your health changes. It helps others know your wishes.

 

Find out more about different kinds of advanced care planning available from Leeds Palliative Care Network

Here are some questions people ask about care at the end of life.

The professionals involved in your care will depend on:

  • Your medical condition.
  • What sort of care and support you need.
  • Where you are receiving the care and support.
  • Your current needs and wishes.

The care you get depends on what you need. Different people may help you, like doctors, nurses, and care workers.

If you have more complex needs, you might get help from a specialist team. This could include:

  • A palliative care doctor
  • A nurse or therapist who knows a lot about this kind of care

You can get palliative care in different places, like:

  • Your home or care home
  • A hospital
  • A hospice

Palliative care is not about making you die faster. It’s about helping you feel better and live well for as long as possible.

Everyone who helps you will try to:

  • Give you the right care
  • At the right time
  • In the right place

They will also try to understand what matters most to you and share that with others who are helping.

Visit the following websites for further information about palliative care services from Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust

 

Useful Resources

What If Things Change - This is a booklet made in Leeds. It helps you think about what matters to you and what you’d like to happen if you suddenly became unwell.

 

My Future Wishes – A Guide to Advance Care Planning - This is a guide to help you and your family talk about your future care. It helps you write down your wishes in a clear way.

Last updated: 19/06/2025