{"id":5713,"date":"2014-02-05T13:02:48","date_gmt":"2014-02-05T13:02:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/?p=5713"},"modified":"2015-07-11T11:31:17","modified_gmt":"2015-07-11T10:31:17","slug":"liverpool-care-pathway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/?p=5713","title":{"rendered":"Liverpool Care Pathway"},"content":{"rendered":"

March 2nd, 2013<\/strong><\/p>\n

You may recently have heard or read criticisms of the Liverpool Care Pathway in the press. The Liverpool Care Pathway is a system of care designed by the Liverpool Marie Curie Hospice and the Royal Liverpool Infirmary to provide support and care to patients in the last hours or days of life. It offers a programme of palliative care, as practised in hospices to be used as a model for better care for the dying in hospitals and other care environments.<\/p>\n

It recognises that as people reach the end of their lives their needs change, and recommends that the needs of patient on the Pathway are regularly reviewed. Critics of the Liverpool Care Pathway are concerned that it’s use shortens life or hastens death and much has been written about the withdrawal of food and fluids.<\/p>\n

Discontinuing medical procedures that are burdensome or debilitating is a difficult decision and one that should be taken in conjunction with the patient, if he is able or his family if he is not. Remember the Liverpool Care Pathway should only be used when all possibilities of life saving treatment have been exhausted and if the patient shows signs of recovery the pathway is no longer appropriate and a new treatment plan should be put in\u00a0 place. Perhaps the most distressing aspect of the pathway is the withdrawal of food or fluid, when the patient is no longer able to swallow. The pathway does not prohibit artificial nutrition and hydration but difficulties may arise if these are considered to be medical treatment rather than basic care.<\/p>\n

These concerns may be resolved with sensitive and open communication between the healthcare team the patient and their family. The Liverpool Care Pathway when used well offers good care for patients and their families with the appropriate relief of pain and distressing symptoms. Relatives and carers can support their loved ones by, monitoring their, condition, asking if they are on the pathway and ensuring they are receiving nursing care including hydration \u2013 in whatever form is most appropriate.<\/p>\n

The Justice and Peace Group have placed some leaflets in the narthex giving further details and there is a (lavender colour) credit card sized card you can keep in your purse or wallet stating that you do not want to be placed on the pathway without your consent or the consent of your relative or carer. If you take one of these cards you will need to sign it and tell your relatives and friends what your wishes are.<\/p>\n

There is another leaflet and card in the narthex which is for use when you are going into hospital. The leaflet consists of a form that you should complete and hand to Hospital staff when you are admitted. This means that your NHS Summary Care Record will be updated to say that you are a Roman Catholic and wish to receive visits from the catholic chaplaincy. There is a card to accompany this leaflet \u2013 this is the pale blue card and like the Liverpool Care Pathway card needs to be signed.<\/p>\n

This information was produced from a full article on the issue of The Liverpool Care Pathway. Click on this link to read further.<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.associationofcatholicwomen.co.uk\/html\/id_cards.html<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
The following comments have appeared in the press<\/b>.Medical reactions<\/b>Medical professionals have expressed serious concerns about the implementation of the Liverpool Care Pathway<\/b>\u00a0scheme. The LCP is only as good as the professional teams using it. Decisions are often taken by relatively inexperienced staff. Doctors say it can be used well with great benefit to patients and relatives\/carers. However it can also be used for euthanasia. Evidence suggests that LCP has been abused in order to bring about death on the basis of medical and nursing prejudice (so-called “best interests” criteria). Many with readily treatable conditions such as pneumonia or urinary and chest infections have been put on LCP. In some quarters there would seem to be a medical bias against the elderly. Those with strokes, the disabled and demented for instance, are not always treated appropriately.How can relatives\/carers help?<\/b>-relatives\/carers should keep a close watch on the patient during
\nthese last few hours or days of life. Ask if the patient is on the
\nLCP and have a clear picture of what care is proposed. Make sure to
\nspeak to a senior doctor.-relatives\/carers can help assess how well the patient can communicate to check they can understand what is happening and are not over-sedated.-ensure that the patient is receiving nursing care including hydration
\nhowever administered. The LCP guidelines state that if a patient is
\njudged to be able to eat or drink, this should be encouraged. Often
\nsick, elderly people tend to stop drinking. Hydration is vital to
\nprevent them becoming confused. Withdrawal of hydration and the use
\nof terminal sedation could actually cause a distressing death.25 March 2010<\/a>These cards are the same size as a credit card and the same quality. With the information leaflet they cost: 30p each + stamped addressed envelope. Contact us for larger quantities.<\/td>\n		<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n\"LCPcard\"<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/td>\n\"LCPBack\"<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\nIdentification as Roman Catholic cardsWe were greatly concerned that ANH (artificial nutrition and hydration) was considered as \u201ctreatment\u201d and could be withdrawn if the patient was deemed to have a \u201cpoor quality of life\u201d thus leading to death by starvation\/dehydration.\u00a0 In our view, the provision of food and fluids, as appropriate, is part of general nursing care.Members were also troubled that many hospitals do not provide priests and hospital visitors with a list of Roman Catholics on their wards.\u00a0 There is no specific guidance on this subject in the Data Protection Act. We made enquiries and were told by the office dealing with queries about the implementation of the Act that their advice is that hospitals and nursing homes should not hold or pass on this information without the consent of the patient.\u00a0 It is therefore most important that details of one\u2019s religious beliefs are made clear to the authorities on admission, even if the subject is not brought up.
\nOur blue card was produced to help allay some of these anxieties.They cost :-1-24 cards .25p each + p & p
\n25 cards – 24p each +\u00a0 p & p
\n100 cards – 23p each + p & pSupplied with a leaflet,\u00a0Going into Hospital?<\/i>\u00a0\u00a0 – 5pA clear plastic wallet can be supplied to hold both cards @ 70p each.to order<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n\"\"<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

March 2nd, 2013 You may recently have heard or read criticisms of the Liverpool Care Pathway in the press. The Liverpool Care Pathway is a system of care designed by the Liverpool Marie Curie Hospice and the Royal Liverpool Infirmary … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-justice-peace"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5713","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5713"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5713\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7875,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5713\/revisions\/7875"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5713"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}