A NEW learning hub which offers training and education in palliative and end of life care launched at Wigan and Leigh Hospice on October 5th.
The Wigan Borough Palliative and End of Life Care Learning Hub offers online and classroom-based learning free of charge to health and social care professionals working in the Borough, in a bid to improve care for residents who have been diagnosed with a life-limiting illness.
The central hub is at Wigan and Leigh Hospice led by the Practice Development Team but satellite hubs are being developed across the Borough.
The hub is led by the Practice Development Team at the hospice (formerly known as Hospice in your Care Home) which was awarded recurrent funding earlier this year to expand their education and training.
Free of charge
Education and training from the hub are available free of charge to all health and social care professionals across the Borough.
Debbie Jones, Practice Development Lead, said: “The hub takes us one step closer to achieving our vision that everyone who needs palliative or end of life care in our Borough will receive a high-quality service.
“The hospice cannot directly reach everyone but, through education, training and practical support offered to care settings across the Borough, we can improve the care of patients, residents and service users.”
The central hub is already working with over 100 care settings alongside other professionals including District Nurses, GPs, the Hospital Specialist Palliative Care team, and Hospice Doctors. This collaborative approach will continue as these services will link in with the hub to offer training sessions based on their own specialisms.
Debbie said: “From now on all education and training will be delivered through the hub which will ensure less repetition and a clearer structure to palliative and end of life care education.”
Hospice in your Care Home
Over the last seven years, the team which launched as Hospice in your Care Home in 2015 has evolved from supporting eight nursing homes to fourteen prior to the pandemic. In response to the pandemic, the Hospice in your Care Home team began offering training and education free of charge to all nursing and residential homes and began to work with Learning Disability Teams, mental health services, Extra Care and supported living settings.