Congratulations to Dan Monnery, Consultant in Palliative Medicine, who was presented the award for Best Quality Improvement and Clinical Audit of the Year at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre for his project ‘Care of the Dying Evaluation (CODE)’.
The project, which the Palliative Care Team has conducted over the past two years, asks bereaved people about their experience of the care Clatterbridge provides to end of life patients.
This project proved very valuable as feedback has identified changes that can be made to improve care for future patients. Some key improvements that have already been enforced as a result of this audit include:
- Improved discussions about artificial hydration and nutrition for people at the end of life.
- New training in spiritual and emotional care for all clinical staff
- Documentation changes to prompt all clinicians to involve families more in treatment decisions and communicate regularly about what to expect in the coming hours to days.
Dan said: “This is an important award for us as it recognises the value in asking for feedback from people during a difficult time, and while it is a difficult topic to talk about, people have been generous in sharing their thoughts to help us improve. We are grateful to everyone who participated.”
The award pays tribute not only to Dan’s hard work and dedication but also to the rest of the Palliative Care Team who have gone above and beyond for patients facing the end of life. In fact, the team also won the 2nd and 3rd prize in this award category.
Below is Chief Executive Liz Bishop, who met with Dan to present him with the award.
Congratulations once again, Dan and the rest of the team!