Live-in Nursing as a Continuing Care Solution

Consultus works closely with District Nurses, Social Care Managers, Locality Managers, Nurse Assessors and GPs throughout England, Scotland and Wales. Together we determine whether live-in nursing or care is the most appropriate and cost-efficient option for an individual Continuing Care recipient; then in many instances we go on to provide a tailored, closely managed service that meets the needs of both the patient and the commissioning organisation.

In many cases, our NHS-funded service users are people who need palliative or complex 24/7 care and where for psychiatric or other reasons it has been determined that the most appropriate environment for them to live is their own home.

Sometimes we provide staff for a week every month or so to give family carers respite.

Most of our clients are adults but we may also be able to provide live-in paediatric nurses for teenagers.

Please see case studies showing how patients with end stage chronic disease, mental health problems or terminal illness and their carers have enjoyed greatly enhanced quality of life once a live-in nursing package has been put in place.

Determining the best place of care

As you know, in choosing the place of care Continuing Care commissioners should take into account the wishes of the patient and their next of kin. If the individual would, for example, like to receive the nursing they need in their home this option should be explored fully.

The NHS Cancer Plan (DoH 2000), meanwhile, acknowledged that cancer patients should be able to live and die in the place of their choice wherever possible. Noting the shortage of residential places for palliative patients, the NICE Guidance on Supportive and Palliative Care 2004 observed that "Commissioners should plan services flexibly around the needs of patients, recognising that this can be achieved in more than one way" and that "an increase in the resources of community specialist palliative care may lessen the need for in-patient care." A report by the National Council for Palliative Care suggests that it would be more effective to change nationally prevailing commissioning practices to one which reflects patient choice.

Consultus Live-in Nursing helps commissioners choose from the widest choice of appropriate options by facilitating intensive, continual, dependable specialist home nursing (subject to proper assessments of the patient’s needs and accommodation).

"There is robust evidence that most people would ideally prefer to die at home, well cared for and in their own familiar environment… As more people become aware of the availability of specialist palliative care at home, and confident of service quality, demand will further increase."
Valuing Choice - Dying at Home, Marie Curie Cancer Care, 2004
Go to The benefits of home nursing in palliative care.

This is a managed care service - not "agency staff hire". NHS PASA agrees that this kind of service does not fit neatly within their "Agency Project" contracts and we do not need to be listed on your regional agency list for you to use our service. We can provide you with the name of a top-level PASA official who will explain more.

Consultus live-in nurses can be provided at short notice to even the most remote and rural areas of the U.K., providing vital support to patients, their relatives and friends.

Please ask for our full brochure including Q & A sheet and terms of business - we can send them by post or email - or we would welcome the opportunity to meet you and your colleagues to discuss everything in person. Please contact the Registered Manager or Nursing Manager on:

Direct line: 01732 771924 or 770403
Switchboard: 01732 355231 or 020 7038 2992 or
Email nursing@consultuscare.com

Consultus Care & Nursing Agency