- Greenwich Hospital-HammondCare (NSW)
- Barwon Health Palliative Care(VIC)
- The Specialist Palliative Care Services (SPCS) in Tasmania
- Austin Health Palliative Care (VIC)
- Braeside Hospital, Wetherill Park (NSW)
- Territory Palliative Care – Top End Service Royal Darwin Hospital (NT)
- St John of God Murdoch Community Hospice (WA)
- Central Adelaide Palliative Service (SA)
- Clare Holland House (ACT)
- Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital Palliative Care Service (WA)
- Townsville Palliative Care Centre (QLD)
HammondCare is an independent Christian charity specialising in palliative care, dementia care, rehabilitation and older age mental health. HammondCare provides these services in NSW through sub-acute hospitals (Greenwich, Neringah and Braeside), residential care and innovative community care services.
Set in the peaceful suburb of Greenwich, the Palliative and Supportive Care Service within Greenwich Hospital provides a 25-bed inpatient unit, a day hospital, outpatient clinics, lymphedema in and outpatient service, community outreach, bereavement counselling and telephone advice 24/7.The service comprises a committed team of health professionals (Medical, Nursing, Social Work, Physio, Occupational, Recreational, Massage and Art therapist(s), Pastoral Care and Bereavement Counsellors) dedicated to providing high quality end of life care, symptom control and rehabilitation to patients and their families affected by a life limiting illness. We care for approximately 500 inpatients a year, and have up to 200 patients on our community list at any given time. We are committed to giving people the choice of dying at home and where possible to provide the support to make this possible.
How would you benefit from a PEPA placement?
This will depend on what your learning needs are. During your placement you will receive education and support from experienced palliative care health professionals. This includes:
• orientation – to the service and a package of useful resources and information
• mentoring by our Clinical Nurse Educator (CNE) and Consultant (CNC) and Nursing Unit Manager (NUM) to ensure that your learning objectives are met
• opportunity to attend:
- multidisciplinary case conference meeting(s) inpatient and/or community
- Doctor’s and CNC round(s)
- family conference(s)
- family support groups
- staff debriefing
- a community home and/or an outreach visit to a hospital within the Northern Sydney Health District
• opportunity to:
- attend inservice(s)
- develop or refresh your clinical and physical assessment skills through face to face teaching and utilising our available e-learning resources and library
As part of its commitment to teaching and learning HammondCare has established two Clinical Training Centres located at Hammondville and Greenwich. The Clinical Training Centre at Greenwich is focussed on Palliative Care and Pain Management and is currently involved in a wide range of research projects in Palliative Care that may be of interest, for example we currently have an innovative nursing research project in progress in conjunction with the University of Technology Sydney and the Pam McLean Communication centre with the aim to improve nursing communication skills through the use of role playing with actors and real life scenarios. Additionally, the Clinical Training Centre hosts a variety of seminars and workshops related to Palliative Care throughout the year.
The Barwon Health Palliative Care Program based in Geelong, Victoria has enjoyed hosting 30 PEPA placements over the years, and we believe we offer unique and innovative perspectives on end of life care for the participants who spend time with us.
The Barwon Health Palliative Care Program is a specialist interdisciplinary palliative care service, which is committed to providing an equitable, seamless, person-centred approach to our community; strengthened by education, research and development.
A distinguishing feature of our palliative care program is that we provide a range of integrated services across the acute, sub-acute and community based settings. With all services based within one program and under the direction of an Executive Director, Clinical Director, and Manager, we are resourced to provide a wide range of experience to PEPA participants.Our Palliative Care Program encompasses;
- Community Palliative Care (located at the De Forest House, McKellar Centre, Ballarat Road, North Geelong); a team which includes 2 clinical nurse consultants, 1 nurse practitioner candidate, medical consultant, registrar and specialist community palliative care nurses, working under the leadership of a coordinator
- 15 bed Palliative Care Unit and 1 ‘swing’ bed – shared between Palliative Care and GEM (located at North Wing, McKellar Centre, Ballarat Road, North Geelong) and including a medical consultant, registrar and junior medical staff, 1 nurse unit manager, 6 ANUMS, 1 clinical nurse specialist, and supporting nursing and allied health staff
- Hospital Based Palliative Care Acute Consultancy Service (located at the Geelong Hospital, Ryrie Street, Geelong) consisting of a medical consultant, registrar, junior medical staff, clinical nurse consultant (CNC) – non-malignant, and an oncology/palliative care nurse practitioner candidate.
- Outpatient clinics
- Cachexia Clinic
- General Palliative Care Clinics at the McKellar Centre and Andrew Love Cancer Centre, Geelong Hospital
- Dyspnoea Clinic (due to begin sessions July 2013)
- Nurse Practitioner Clinic at the Andrew Love Cancer Centre, The Geelong Hospital (to commence April 2013)
- Psychology Clinic
- Social Work Clinic
- Clinical trials team currently overseeing seven research trials
- Supportive care team comprising of a clinical psychologist, grief and bereavement counsellor, social worker and supportive care worker – spiritual
- Project & Administration team comprising a range of administration staff, an education coordinator, and project workers involved in innovative projects such as Telehealth
- Volunteers, a program coordinated by the Volunteer Coordinator
- Sub-regional & regional team which provides medical, nursing and allied health consultancy service to our sub-regional palliative care partners on the Bellarine Peninsula and Colac
- Shared care arrangement with Community Nursing and GPs which provides community based clients with optimal shared care arrangements between community nursing services, GPs, and palliative care community specialist services
We are keen to assist PEPA participants in meeting their learning goals, and providing experiences that will enhance their current knowledge and skills and provide opportunities to further develop their passion and skill in end of life care.As a specialist palliative care service, we benefit from PEPA placements in many ways. Our staff have developed and refined their mentoring skills over time, aiming to improve their contribution to participants’ learning. Having PEPA participants present has encouraged us to review how we do our work, and make changes where there is identified need for improvement. Our service also has a productive working relationship with our regional body, the Barwon South Western Palliative Care Consortium, which includes innovative projects such as joint work on providing post-PEPA education to encourage the ongoing development of learning in the region.
We support the PEPA program because we believe immersion into a specialist service has great benefits for the participants, their services and communities, and our staff and program.
Barwon CPC Team Intake Meeting
The Specialist Palliative Care Services (SPCS) in Tasmania include:
- Specialist Palliative Care Service inpatient unit, J.W. Whittle Palliative Care Unit, located in Hobart
- Specialist Palliative Care Service Hospital Palliative Care Team, located at the Royal Hobart Hospital
- Specialist Palliative Care Service, Community Palliative Care Service, located in Hobart
- Specialist Palliative Care Service, located in Launceston
- Specialist Palliative Care Service, located in Burnie
J.W. Whittle Palliative Care Unit
The J.W. Whittle, Palliative Care Unit (PCU) is located at the Repatriation Centre, in Hobart, the capital of Tasmania.
It is named after Sergeant John Woods Whittle who was a WW1 Victoria Cross recipient.
The PCU is a 10 bed unit and provides 24 hour care to patients and their families.
The patients are cared for using a multidisciplinary approach by palliative medical specialists, registrar and resident doctors, registered and enrolled nurses, social worker, physiotherapist, music therapist, pastoral care worker, pharmacist and volunteers. Speech and occupational therapists are also available as needed.
The PCU provides symptom management, carer respite, psychosocial and spiritual support for patients and their families. Many patients return home to be cared for by their local GP and community health nurses and the specialist palliative care community team while others choose to remain in the unit until their death.
The staff on the PCU provide an holistic approach to care and this is complemented by hospice volunteers who provide such things as a listening ear, a friendly face and a foot massage.
The PCU is a welcoming and friendly family environment with such things as a children’s play area, rooms where relatives and families can spend time together, a communal kitchen where relatives and friends can prepare food, and a lovely court yard which can be accessed from every room where there are potted plants, water features and a barbecue which can be used by families to share a meal with their loved ones. (Please note due to COVID 19 restrictions some of these features are not available at this time due to health restrictions – this may include visiting hours, children’s play area and access to kitchen facilities and visiting rooms). This may vary depending upon the current Level of restrictions in Tasmania.
The PCU has been an integral part of the PEPA program as it is the only public hospice in Tasmania. Participants come from all around the state to carry out their placements and have always found it to be a very positive experience. Whittle Unit staff also benefit from hosting PEPA participants. It provides an opportunity for them to meet staff from other health care settings, hear about their challenges and to develop a network of health professionals across the state.
Major Hospital and Community-Based Palliative Care Services
Specialist Palliative Care Services consultancy teams are available within the Royal Hobart Hospital, Launceston General Hospital, the Melwood Unit at St Luke’s Campus Calvary Health Care, The North West Regional Hospital and the Mersey Community Hospital. All of our specialist teams work closely with hospital staff to assist patients and their families in meeting patient and family need.
PEPA participants can spend time in all specialist palliative care settings to learn more about the delivery of palliative care.
Please note that all participants will be required to have daily COVID 19 screening and are advised if they have any cold/flu symptoms that they are not to attend the workplace. Other requirements may be in place and these will be discussed with participants prior to their placements. Manager support for the placement is a pre-requisite of attendance.
Angela Kosmeyer, Kristen Aylmer and Anna McLean
Nurse Unit Managers, Palliative Care
and
Helen Woodbridge, Clinical Nurse Educator, PEPA


- Consultant physician/Head of department;
- Clinical nurse consultant;
- Clinic nurse
- Registrar;
- Two social workers;
- Occupational therapist;
- Chaplain: and
- Administrative assistant
Townsville Palliative Care Centre is situated at the Townsville Hospital. Constructed with community support and assistance from the Queensland Cancer Fund, the Centre was purpose built and opened in 2009. It has a 15 bed inpatient unit with capacity for 20 beds in the future. The inpatient unit has 14 single rooms and three double suites each with views either to the mountains or a nearby creek. The gardens have a spiritual room and gazebo for outdoor activities. The Palliative care service has been in operation for over 18 years.
The Centre’s outreach service provides a consultancy inpatient and outpatient service for the Townsville Health Service District hospitals and community. The consultancy service also visits Cairns once a fortnight. To ensure 24 hours day, 7 days a week support for patients wishing to remain at home, a contracting organisation provides home nursing and equipment as part of the outreach service. . Patients are able to move seamlessly between the inpatient and outpatient service due to the coordination between the palliative care multidisciplinary team and the hospital and community services.The multidisciplinary team comprises of a Director of Palliative care, consultant, inpatient registrar, community registrar, SMO, occupational therapist, physiotherapist, dietician, speech therapist, pharmacist, Indigenous liaison officer, coordinator of volunteers, social workers, volunteers and nursing staff.
The Palliative Care Centre is actively involved in educating health professionals and the community through various forums. The Centre is situated beside the James Cook University, which allows students of all disciplines to have access to the Centre. Regular videoconferencing to hospitals throughout North Queensland also provides education to those unable to attend the Centre.PEPA placements are another opportunity for the Centre to provide education, with placements from various settings, disciplines and areas of the State. The most recent have been from Weipa, Atherton, Bundaberg and Mount Isa. Participants that have attended for four to five days are GP’s, Residential aged care facility registered nurses, Indigenous liaison officers, Clinical nurses and Registrars. The participants have also been a great source of knowledge for the staff at the Centre as the provide information for what the main issues are in their community and the Centre team can provide support during their placement and on their return to their workplace.
It is honour and a privilege to have PEPA placements and be able to provide education and support to health professionals making a difference in various settings of care. By building partnerships and improving access to palliative care, we are strengthening an important part of health services – end of life care.Debbie D’Urso
Nurse Unit Manager
Palliative Care Outreach
The Townsville Palliative Care Centre