How does palliative care work?
Palliative care is needed when someone is living with a life-limiting or terminal condition such as dementia and cancer. It involves therapies and treatments to help manage the symptoms and conditions. Whether that’s assisting with personal care, companionship, mobility or emotional support, palliative care is crucial to help the patient and their loved ones feel comfortable and at ease.
While palliative care can be provided in a residential care home or hospice, many families are opting to get access to this type of care at home as it’s a place where people feel comfortable and at peace. Ultimately, palliative care is put in place to improve the quality of life for the patient and family, whilst taking into consideration their needs and wishes.
Why end of life care is important
End-of-life care is when a person’s condition begins to deteriorate and all treatments and therapies have been explored. In other words, the conclusion of palliative care. It can be a distressing time for the family and loved ones, which is why end-of-life care from Helping Hands, allows the individual to be cared for by our team of dedicated and experienced carers, while providing the family with the emotional support they need.
With end-of-life care, our goal is to provide exceptional care for the individual, ensuring their wishes are fulfilled. So, they can pass away with respect and dignity in the comfort of their own home.
Types of jobs in palliative care
As a carer, you will be compassionate, kind and a pillar of support, as it can be a distressing time for the customer and their loved ones. You can provide care as a visiting carer or a live-in carer. As a visiting carer, you can provide support for families from as little as 30 minutes a week or make several trips a day. Or as a live-in carer, you will stay in the home with the individual and provide continuous support when they need it most.
As a carer, you will be on hand to provide support so that the customer is looked after in the best possible way. Your responsibilities will include:
- Personal care, such as bathing, continence and getting dressed
- Helping with mobility, for example moving positions in bed and helping with standing and sitting. You will be provided with training to learn how to use hoists.
- Preparing and cooking meals
- Running errands, such as picking up medication and going to the grocery store
- Assisting with housekeeping such as the laundry, changing bedding, cleaning and vacuuming
- Providing companionship
- Assisting with taking medication
- Support with catheter, conveen and stoma care
Jobs and vacancies
If you want to make a difference in someone’s life and carry out work that is rewarding and fulfilling, then join Helping Hands as a palliative care worker today. We have over 160 branches in the UK, which means we have palliative care jobs local to your area. Whether you want to apply for a role on a visiting or live-in basis, you can apply directly via our website.
End of life careers
If you are looking to work as a carer who provides families with care and emotional support then we would love you to join the Helping Hands care team. Being an end-of-life carer is more than just a job, you’ll be a pillar of support for the patient and their family. As an empathetic and compassionate individual, you’ll become more than just a carer, you’ll become a companion. Ultimately, you’ll be a valuable asset to the family that will make their lives a little bit easier, so they can focus on things that matter most.
Palliative care salary and benefits
We understand that being a carer can be demanding but rewarding at the same time. All our carers work hard, which is why we believe that they should be rewarded. At Helping Hands you’ll have access to a wide range of benefits including:
- Guaranteed Pay Contract – same wage every month, whether you’re given care hours or not
- We pay more than other home care companies
- Flexible working hours
- Free Blue Light Card – includes thousands of discounts and offers from retailers, restaurants, and holiday companies.
- Access to travel allowance – 35p per mile in between care calls
- Early Pay app – request up to 50% of your pay in advance of your payday
- Dedicated support with career progression
- Generous refer a friend scheme
- Paid holiday and bank holidays, plus pension scheme entitlement.
- We promise to put our carers and customers first as we are fully regulated by the Care Quality Commission and Care Inspectorate Wales.
Please apply today if you would like to work for a company that makes a difference in people’s lives.
Page reviewed by Rebecca Bennett, Regional Clinical Lead on April 28, 2022