150 people benefit from Hospice’s on-call service since its launch

Supported by the 2017 Malta Social Impact Awards, Hospice’s after-hours, on-call service is now in full swing. The service, which forms part of Hospice’s comprehensive palliative care, provides over-the-phone support, guidance and advice to any Hospice pa­tients, as well as their family members and caregivers.
The idea behind the initiative was to have professional staff available over the phone at hours when professional help is usually difficult to reach.
The staff would be trained to assist with any issues that could be resolved at the patients’ home, with the aim of targeting symptom management and psycho­social issues such as anxiety, as well as avoiding unnecessary hospitalisation.
Hospice Malta plans to open a Hospice complex, including an in-patient unit, by 2021, which will be the first Hospice palliative centre in Malta and will therefore give patients access to support on a 24-hour basis.

Until then, there was need for a support service available to patients after Hospice opening hours. After piloting the service in 2017, Hospice realised they needed the appropriate techno­logy and software for the service to reach its full potential, and therefore applied for the...