PCOC’s palliative care outcomes program
PCOC’s palliative care outcomes program helps improve patient and carer outcomes. This program drives improvements in the quality of palliative care.
Central to PCOC’s outcomes program is a framework and protocol for routine clinical assessment and response. By embedding the framework into routine clinical practice, staff have access to consistent information to plan and deliver care. This information can be accessed immediately at the point of care.
PCOC also produces reports for each service. These reports pool together information from a six-month period. The reports help drive quality improvements within services.
National benchmarking is also core to the outcomes program. PCOC’s approach to benchmarking helps support services to come together to form a community of practice. PCOC’s benchmarking supports services in identifying what works in clinical practice and sharing these innovations for the benefit of patients and their carers. There are twenty national benchmarks. Each benchmark was established in consultation with the palliative care sector. Download the Guide to National Outcome Measures and Benchmarks (pdf)
PCOC’s outcomes program was developed in the specialist palliative care sector. It has been used extensively with tens of thousands of patients and families. It has been used in palliative care units, by consult teams and in the community. The outcomes program has now expanded. It is used in all settings where patients receive palliative and end-of-life care. This includes a PCOC model designed specifically for use in long-term care settings, such as residential aged care facilities.
PCOC’s palliative care profile program
PCOC’s profile program helps identify those that may benefit from palliative care. This is done through a one-off assessment. This program helps identify and examine the characteristics of those that may need palliative care.
The profile program can be used in any setting where palliative care patients may be assessed. This includes within inpatient and community settings, and primary care and long-term care settings, such as residential aged care facilities. The assessment is brief, yet informative. The profile collection form and data dictionary are available for download.
