Palliative Care Guidelines

INTRODUCTION

The third edition of the Palliative Care Guidelines has been launched in print format and is available in an A4 and pocket edition. The A4 pages are available on this site along with other guidelines, patient information and online resources for professionals and patients. Information about specialist palliative care services is available through the links to the NHS Lothian Intranet.

The Palliative Care Guidelines reflect a consensus of opinion about good practice in the management of adult patients with a life limiting illness. They have been developed by a multidisciplinary group of professionals working in the community, hospital and specialist palliative care services and approved by local Formulary and Clinical Policy Committees. There is a separate section covering paediatric palliative care on this website.

Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the Guidelines contents and that evidence informed information has been included in line with the AGREE Criteria. Adherence to guideline recommendations will not ensure a successful outcome in every case. It is the responsibility of all professionals to exercise clinical judgement in the management of individual patients. Palliative care specialists occasionally use or recommend other drugs, doses or drug combinations.

NHS Lothian currently holds the copyright for the Paliative Care Guidelines. You are free to download and print copies for your own use but please acknowledge authorship if you copy or disseminate them. We would like to to thank all those who contributed to the development of these resources