Jobs & careers in palliative care

Jobs & careers In Palliative Care

Are you thinking of a career in palliative care? The care industry has an abundance of roles to be explored, and although palliative care may seem like it could be a sombre atmosphere to work in due to its connection with end-of-life care, the act of helping someone manage their pain and symptoms (the primary purpose of palliative care) can be incredibly rewarding. 

Here, we are uncovering everything you need to know to take your first steps as a carer in the palliative care field, including an overview of what palliative care is and what it involves, what qualifications, skills and qualities you need to work in these roles, the rewards of helping people, the challenges you may face, career progression opportunities, and how to find out whether or not this is the right path for you.

At Home Instead, our aim is to help people age positively and in place by bringing expert care to their home. For nearly 20 years, we have been providing the highest standard of domiciliary care, and creating industry-leading training programmes for our Care Professionals that are accredited by nursing and medical professionals. Today, we are the world’s largest global home care network, supporting over 100,000 older adults with personalised, tailored care at home. Whatever questions you have about care work and the roles we currently have available at Home Instead, we can help. 

What is palliative care?

Many people associate palliative care with end-of-life care, and while the two are connected, they can also be offered to patients separately – this is an important distinction to make, especially if you are interested in working in this field. 

A person may benefit from palliative care if they require pain relief and symptom relief, but do not have a terminal diagnosis. This type of care can be offered alongside other treatments intended to improve or cure a serious health condition, and the focus is ultimately to increase a patient’s quality of life. For this reason, it can be a gratifying role to work in. 

Do I need to be a nurse to be involved in palliative care?

The location tends to determine the exact team that will provide palliative care, as an individual may receive this care in a hospice, a hospital, a care home or nursing home, or in their own home. There are several elements of palliative care which can be offered, such as physical care, psychological care and spiritual care, so there are a variety of roles available.

A number of professionals may be involved in palliative care, such as nurses, the person’s GP, counsellors, social care staff, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, complementary therapists, chaplains of all faiths (if relevant), pharmacists, and more. With so many people involved, having a live-in carer is often helpful to coordinate visits from various other support workers, and our Home Instead Care Professionals can help with this. 

The person’s GP has the overall responsibility for their palliative care if they are receiving this at home, but community nurses may visit to provide medication and treatments. Often, people with a terminal illness will make the decision to stay at home with the people they love to receive palliative care – research suggests 71% of people prefer this option over a hospice. If the person has chosen to do this, home carers may be brought in to assist. You do not need to be a nurse to help with palliative care, as often family caregivers will be involved, as well as care workers. 

Ultimately, everyone involved in the palliative care process – from doctors to carers – will work together to achieve the common goal of making the person as comfortable as possible. 

What are the downsides of working in palliative care?

As with all care roles, palliative care can be incredibly demanding and comes with its challenges. Here are a few of the downsides of a role in palliative care:

• It can be mentally draining, as it involves constant exposure to patient suffering 
• The demanding nature of palliative care (both emotionally and physically) can lead to carer burnout if not managed well 
• It can be emotionally taxing due to regular exposure to death and grief 
• It can be frustrating and upsetting if a person’s pain or suffering is unable to be alleviated 
• It can be challenging to navigate complex family dynamics within a person’s home 
• Patients going through palliative care can have unpredictable symptoms, which can be challenging for care workers
• It can lead to ethical dilemmas when important decisions must be made (keep in mind, carers will not be able to make medical decisions)

What skills does a good palliative care worker need to have?

Due to the demanding and emotionally challenging nature of roles in palliative care, certain skills can be helpful if you are pursuing a career in this field, such as:

• Strong communication skills – This can help to effectively convey important information and understand patients who may have trouble communicating as their condition progresses
• Good listening skills – This can be useful to effectively provide emotional support to the patient and their families 
• An understanding of pain management strategies – Keep in mind carers will not administer pain medication themselves, but an understanding of this is helpful for palliative care
• An understanding of symptom management – While care workers will not administer medications or treatments, knowledge of how to address symptoms such as nausea and fatigue can be helpful in this role to improve the person’s quality of life
• Collaboration skills – Understanding how to work with others can help when working alongside health professionals and support workers involved in the patient’s care 
• Use of initiative – Palliative care sometimes requires carers to make fast decisions and act quickly to ensure patient comfort, so an ability to think on your feet is useful  
• An understanding of advocacy – Being a good patient advocate is important in palliative care. For example, speaking up for the patient’s wishes at appropriate times, and ensuring their preferences are respected
• Ability to recognise changes – You may be one of the people spending the most time with the patient, so being able to recognise changes in their condition and convey these to appropriate medical staff in a timely manner is vital 
• An understanding of end-of-life care planning – Although palliative care does not always mean the patient will pass away, this can happen if they move to end-of-life care stage, so an understanding of what this entails can help you be prepared
• An understanding of how to provide bereavement support – As above, many patients going through end-of-life care will be surrounded by loved ones who will experience grief both during their illness and after they have passed, so it can help to understand the best ways to provide support to them
• Good organisational skills – As a palliative carer, you may be required to coordinate visits from other care workers and healthcare professionals, so being well organised is important 
• Experience helping people or providing care – Although this is not required to start your career in care, it helps to understand what the role entails and gain some experience in a general care role before transitioning to palliative care

At Home Instead, we look for certain qualities in our potential carers, but we provide all necessary training to ensure you step into this role confidently to provide high quality care. 

What personal qualities would benefit a palliative care role?

As well as useful skills, there are certain personal qualities that make a great palliative carer, such as compassion, empathy, a desire to help others, patience, emotional resilience, respect, cultural sensitivity, open-mindedness, reliability, and flexibility. 

Even if you have no past experience or qualifications for the care industry, we always look for people who have a natural ability as a carer, with qualities like the above. If you believe you have the compassion, understanding and emotional resilience to handle a palliative care role, we would love to hear from you at Home Instead.