FOI 24/25-1158 DOCUMENT 8 Disclosure Log
Understand palliative care SGP KP Publishing
Exported on 2025-02-11 03:34:09
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FOI 24/25-1158 Disclosure LogSGP KP Publishing – Understand palliative care
Table of Contents
1 Recent updates …………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 4
2 Before you start …………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 5
3 What is palliative care? …………………………………………………………………………………………. 6
4 What palliative care services the mainstream health system should provide ………….. 8 4.1 Eligibility decisions ……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 8 4.2 Planning decisions ……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 8
5 Next steps …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 9
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FOI 24/25-1158 Disclosure LogSGP KP Publishing – Understand palliative care
This article provides guidance for a local area coordinator, early childhood partner, access delegate, review officer, liaison officers (HLO/JLO), planner delegate and planner (non- partnered area) to understand: what palliative care is what palliative care services the mainstream health system should provide.
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1 Recent updates
3 October 2024 Updated guidance to reflect legislation changes from 3 October 2024. All supports we fund must be NDIS supports.
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2 Before you start
You have read and understood: Our Guideline – Community connections (external) Our Guideline – Applying to the NDIS (external) in section Will you likely need support under the NDIS for your whole life? Our Guideline – Reasonable and necessary supports (external) Our Guideline – Mainstream and community supports (external).
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3 What is palliative care?
Palliative care is a person and family-centred approach to care. It starts from when a person first learns they have a life-limiting condition. A life-limiting condition means a progressive or advanced illness that’s unlikely to be cured. A person with a life-limiting condition may live for years, months, or weeks with the condition.
Palliative care is a holistic approach. It involves supporting the whole person, not just their illness or symptoms. Palliative care: is relevant to all people with a life-limiting condition, regardless of age, prognosis, disease stage or treatment choice is available at any stage in the person’s illness aims to provide support and comfort, rather than cure the illness can be provided in different places, for example a person’s home or a hospice supports a person’s physical, emotional, psychological, social and other needs is person-centred and individualised.
We can only fund NDIS supports (external), which are the services, items and equipment that can be funded by the NDIS. This means state and territory-based health services are responsible for most palliative care supports including: clinical nursing care and pain management planning for future medical treatment and care goals counselling and bereavement services family and carer support equipment to aid care at home, for example respiratory and oxygen support. Note: In some situations, this equipment may be an NDIS support for a participant.
Palliative care services can be delivered in a range of settings, including: community services hospital – inpatient and outpatient in-home supported accommodation.
Additional support for people needing palliative care can also be provided by: people with lived experience family, friends, and volunteers advocacy agencies, like Palliative Care Australia (external) disability or condition specific support services.
People who receive palliative care may also require personal care and domestic assistance supports. To learn more, go to article Understand supports for a participant with a life-limiting condition.
End-of-life care is a specific phase of palliative care for someone in the last 3 to 12 months of life. The person’s and their carers’ needs are higher at this time. End-of-life care includes increased supports and coordinated care. This is to make sure a person can live as well as possible and with dignity until they die. This support extends to their family and carers and includes bereavement care.
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To learn more on how palliative care differs from other types of care, go to What is palliative care? (external). To understand key terms, go to article Glossary of key terms used in the palliative care system.
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4 What palliative care services the mainstream health system should provide
Palliative care is a universal health right. Every person in Australia has the right to evidence- based and person-centred care at the end of their life, appropriate for their goals and needs.
We can only fund NDIS supports (external), which are the services, items and equipment that can be funded by the NDIS. The mainstream health system provides palliative care supports.
Australia’s National Palliative Care Strategy 2018 (external) outlines the plan to make sure everyone can access the highest level of palliative care. This includes national, and state and territory service models, to deliver palliative care when and where it’s needed.
Specialist palliative care services provided by state and territory governments focus on clinical care, symptom management, and bereavement services. But they don’t focus on personal care, functional supports, domestic assistance like food or linen services, transport support, or home maintenance.
To help you support applicants and participants to access mainstream and community services, go to article Mainstream and community support services for a person with a life-limiting condition.
4.1 Eligibility decisions
Applicants who need or receive palliative care may be eligible for the NDIS. To make an eligibility decision, you must request advice from the Technical Advice and Practice Improvement Branch (TAPIB), regardless of the proposed eligibility decision. To do this, go to article Create a technical advice case. A specialist access team will then make the eligibility decision. Learn more in article Check evidence for a decision – terminal illness.
4.2 Planning decisions
Under a shared model of support, a participant can receive NDIS supports (external) at the same time as palliative care supports.
When the participant’s disability support needs change, you’ll need to consider if their support needs can be met through NDIS supports. Or if they need support through other services, like the health system.
To make a decision to change a plan to align with the participant’s palliative care support needs, you’ll need to request advice from TAPIB. To learn more, go to Requesting Advice or article Create a technical advice case. Note: The Partner Performance Branch can support partners to seek guidance from TAPIB.
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5 Next steps
If you need to make an eligibility decision where there is evidence of a terminal illness, go to article Check evidence for a decision – terminal illness. If you’re considering NDIS supports for a person with a life-limiting condition, go to article Understand supports for a participant with a life-limiting condition. To help you talk with an applicant or participant with a life-limiting condition, go to article Navigate conversations about life-limiting conditions. If you receive a request to change a plan to align with the participant’s palliative care support needs, go to article Prepare to submit a plan change request.
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