Palliative and End of Life Care at Home
When someone wants to stay at home, we help make that possible. Comfort for them, and support for the people around them.
- Nurse-Led
- CQC Rated Good
- Office Staffed 24 Hours
- Serving Hampshire Since 2013
Photograph to be supplied
Image 1, Hero. 16:9, carer sitting close and holding the hand of an elderly woman resting in bed. No medical equipment.
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Staying at Home
Most people, asked where they would want to be, say home. Far fewer manage it, usually because the practical support is not there when it is needed.
Palliative care is support for someone living with a terminal or life-limiting illness. It can start months or years before the end of life, alongside treatment, and its purpose is comfort rather than cure. End of life care is the part of it that covers the last weeks and days.
We provide both at home, alongside hospice teams, district nurses and GPs. Our part is the daily presence. Personal care done gently, medication given on time, the household kept going, and someone in the house so a family does not have to hold everything alone.
We have supported Hampshire families through this since 2013, and it is some of the most important work we do.
What Our Care Covers
Comfort and personal care
Washing, dressing, mouth care, repositioning to protect skin and relieve pressure, and help with continence, all done slowly and at the person's pace.
Medication and symptom support
Administering prescribed medication on time, monitoring pain, breathlessness, appetite and rest, and escalating changes to the district nursing or hospice team the same day.
Presence through the night
Night sitting, live-in care or full 24 hour cover with a waking carer. Nights are usually the hardest part, and families should not have to face them without sleep.
Practical and emotional support for the family
Meals, laundry, shopping, and someone to sit with the person while a relative gets an hour, a walk or a proper night's sleep.
Part of the Wider Team
End of life care at home only works when everyone involved is talking to each other. District nurses manage clinical symptoms. Hospice teams advise and support. GPs prescribe. Our carers are the ones in the house every day.
That daily presence matters, because our carers notice changes first. A drop in appetite, more discomfort at night, less time awake. We make sure those observations reach the right professional quickly, rather than waiting for the next scheduled visit.
We also make sure the family is not the one repeating the same information to five different people. Where you want us to, we can hold that thread.
Our care is overseen by our nursing team, and our office is staffed by an experienced member of staff 24 hours a day, so there is always someone to call at three in the morning.
Photograph to be supplied
Image 2, Family Supported. 3:2, carer sitting quietly with a tired family member. No staged emotion.
Carer in green Karis Care uniform with logo on left chest sitting quietly with a family member at a kitchen table in Hampshire during palliative care
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Their Wishes Come First
Everyone's idea of a good day is different, and at this stage the small preferences carry a great deal of weight. Which side to lie on. Whether the curtains stay open. The radio on or the house quiet. Who they want in the room and who they would rather not see just yet.
We record all of that at the assessment and we keep to it. If an advance care plan, a ReSPECT form or a DNACPR decision is in place, our carers work to it and we make sure every carer on the rota knows what it says.
Where someone has a faith, a routine or a wish about their final days, tell us. It costs us nothing to honour it and it usually matters more than anything else on this page.
Paying for Care at This Stage
NHS Continuing Healthcare Fast Track
Where someone has a rapidly deteriorating condition and may be approaching the end of life, a clinician can complete a Fast Track application. It is designed to be quick, often decided within days, and it can fund the full package of care at home. Ask the GP, district nurse, hospice team or hospital discharge coordinator about it. Many families are never told it exists.
Local authority and direct payments
Hampshire County Council may contribute after assessment, and direct payments let you choose your own provider.
Self-funding
You arrange and pay directly. A written rate sheet is provided before care begins, and there is no long-term commitment.
Arranging Care
Call us
01420 551309, at any hour. Tell us what is happening. You do not need the right words or a plan.
We assess quickly
Where time is short we prioritise the visit, and we can often assess the same day or the next.
Care begins
We agree what is needed, put the team in place and start. Costs are confirmed in writing, but we will never let paperwork delay urgent care.
We adjust as things change
Needs at this stage can change within days. We reassess and increase support as required, including moving to overnight or 24 hour cover.
Questions Families Ask
How quickly can care start?
Often within a day or two, and sometimes sooner. Call us and we will tell you honestly what is possible rather than making a promise we cannot keep.
Can someone be with us through the night?
Yes. Night sitting, live-in care or 24 hour cover with a waking carer. Most families find the nights the hardest part, and this is usually where our support matters most.
Will it be the same carers?
We keep the team as small as we can, because familiarity matters enormously now. Where a new carer is needed we overlap them with someone already known to you.
Do you work with the hospice and district nurses?
Yes, and we expect to. We coordinate with them rather than duplicating their work.
What happens when someone dies at home?
Our carers know what to do and what not to rush. We follow the agreed plan, contact the professionals who need to be called and stay with you until the people you need are there. Nobody is left alone with it.
Can you support us if we do not know how long is left?
Yes. Very few families do. Care can start now and change as things change.
Get in Touch
If you would rather speak to someone, call 01420 551309 at any hour. Otherwise leave your details here and we will call you.
Call Us Whenever You Need To
Our office is staffed by an experienced member of the team 24 hours a day, every day of the year. If you are not sure what to ask for yet, call anyway.
01420 55130907717 495533admin@kariscareservices.co.uk
We reply within 24 hours, and the same day for urgent enquiries.