When looking into palliative care for a loved one, it can be difficult to know where to turn. Palliative care is designed to make people as comfortable as possible and improve quality of life, but family members can worry about the cost and who will pay for it.
The benefits of palliative care are well understood and plentiful, and understanding the costs can help you plan for the future. Today, we’ll explore palliative care costs in the UK and funding options available.
What Is Palliative Care?
Palliative care aims to support people with life-limiting conditions such as cancer, heart failure and lung disease, giving them the best quality of life possible. The five stages of palliative care shift the focus from treatment to pain management, spanning the last weeks, months or years of life.
Palliative care includes the practical and emotional support of loved ones, too, so you can continue making the most of your time together without palliative medicine getting in the way.
Is Palliative Care the Same as End-of-Life Care?
While end-of-life care falls under palliative care, these services shouldn’t be used interchangeably. End-of-life care supports people in their final few weeks or days of life, while palliative care can be provided to anyone with a serious illness.
Palliative care will often transition into end-of-life care as a person’s symptoms progress and their condition deteriorates. However, if it is believed to be necessary, your loved one can be offered palliative care for months or even years before transitioning into end-of-life specialist care.
How Much Do Palliative Care Services Cost?
The cost of palliative care depends on your chosen setting and level of support required.
Palliative Care at Home
Palliative care at home can be provided by unpaid carers or professional carers:
- Unpaid care: Usually offered by family or friends for free, focusing on companionship, mobility support and day-to-day assistance.
- Professional care: Provided by fully-trained, experienced carers who can help with symptom monitoring, management plans and emergency support.
Unpaid care might make the most financial sense in the short term, but there are still a number of expenses to consider, such as transportation costs, care-related items, holistic care, and mobility equipment.
Caring for a loved one can also be physically and emotionally challenging, often outweighing the financial benefits.
At Country Cousins, we provide live-in care for individuals requiring palliative or end-of-life care. We’ll carefully match your loved one with a specialist carer to ensure they’re right for your loved one’s specific personality and condition.
Our care costs are tailored to your family members’ needs. However, generally, live-in care fees start around £1,000 to £1,800 a week. Costs may be lower for couples, making it a cost-effective option for remaining at home with a loved one.
Palliative Care in a Hospice
Palliative care in a hospice setting is usually free, but not everyone can stay there. Stays in hospice are often short-term while a person receives inpatient care or nursing before returning home. Others will move into hospice care in the last months or weeks of life.
Certain hospices offer outpatient palliative care services, such as psychological support and occupational therapy. If you want to learn more about local hospice care for a loved one, talk to their GP.
Palliative Care in a Care Home
Many nursing homes offer palliative care services for individuals with a serious or terminal illness. Staff can provide round-the-clock care, help manage pain symptoms, support daily tasks, and offer emotional support to patients.
Care homes generally cost between £700 and £2,000 a week, with the latter being more common for specialist palliative care. The cost of your loved one’s care home position will depend on the complexity of their needs and location.
How Can I Pay for Palliative Care?
Palliative care costs can be a large source of anxiety and worry for families of people with serious illness. However, it’s important to remember that there are options available to you during this stressful time.
H3 Will the NHS Help?
NHS Continuing Healthcare is available to fund many cases, and for those who require end-of-life care, there is a fast-track service.
Unfortunately, not everyone is eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare, even if they do have a terminal illness. The severity of symptoms and medical care needs will be assessed by a multidisciplinary team, usually comprising at least one healthcare professional and one social carer.
This assessment will look at your loved one’s health, how it affects their daily life, and whether they need support from others. They will then determine whether you’re eligible for NHS support.
H3 Will the Local Council Help?
Many local councils will support your loved one as their care needs develop. Ask your local authority for a care needs assessment for your loved one, no matter how much money you have.
A care needs assessment looks over your loved one’s daily routine and the support they’ll need. They’ll clearly lay out what care and support you’ll need and why, before recommending the different options available to you.
Once a care plan has been created, a financial assessment is conducted to determine who is responsible for a person’s care costs.
H3 Can Anyone Else Help?
If NHS Continuing Healthcare and the local authority aren’t suitable for helping with your loved one’s palliative care costs, there are a few other options to consider:
- Charitable organisations: Certain charities, such as Marie Curie and Sue Ryder, may be able to help support your loved one at home or help with care costs.
- Friends and family members: If a person is struggling to pay for palliative care, their loved ones may be able to help with interest-free loans or unpaid care shifts.
- Self-funding: Individuals can choose to pay for their care privately, allowing them to remain in familiar surroundings during end-of-life care.
H2 How Country Cousins Can Help
At Country Cousins, we pride ourselves on providing bespoke, comprehensive palliative care from the comfort of home. We understand that care can feel expensive, which is why we’ll work with you to create a tailored plan to ensure you’re only paying for what your loved one truly needs.
Our palliative care services include:
- Assistance with daily tasks, such as bathing and dressing
- Mobility support
- Symptom management
- Domestic help, including cooking, cleaning and pet care
- Companionship and emotional support
- Transportation to and from appointments
- Emergency care provided 24/7
We work hard to ensure there are no hidden fees when you join our care services. We don’t charge joining fees or spring unexpected costs on you, and we don’t charge higher rates for bank holidays or weekends. These are a few of the ways we aim to keep costs down for our clients.
H2 Talk to Our Team Today
As the UK’s longest-serving introductory live-in care agency, we have been providing compassionate live-in care to those who need it since 1959 – all from the comfort of their own homes.
Give us a call today on 01293 224 706. Our experienced team is on hand to help from Monday to Friday, 8 am to 6 pm. Alternatively, contact us through our online enquiry form.
