dying with dignity - Lamp Online

Silver Chain ‘partnership’ is really a takeover, nurses say.

Western Sydney Local Health District chief executive Danny O’Connor claims the Silver Chain arrangement is a “partnership” with WSLHD aimed at “increasing options for patients and families in western Sydney”.

However, palliative care nurses employed by Western Sydney LHD’s Integrated Care service say the arrangement is about shifting patients and profits to the private sector.

“They say it’s a partnership but we all know it’s not,” one nurse told The Lamp. “Silver Chain don’t want to share care; they want total ownership of patients.”

Silver Chain Group calls itself the biggest provider of non-government community-based palliative care services in Australia.

It says it has more than 3,000 staff, 400 volunteers and 62,000 patients in all mainland states.

A big player in WA

According to the magazine Medical Forum, the company controls around 35 per cent of health and community services public funding in WA, giving it a “unique and leading position within WA’s primary care infrastructure.”

“They try to operate in western Sydney on the basis of their West Australian model but in WA they are the community health service,” said a nurse familiar with Silver Chain.

“In western Sydney we have an existing community service delivered by the public health system.

“Years ago, we covered people 24/7, but over time it has been eroded and we have had our funding taken off us.

“We still care for patients in the community but now we are forced to hand them over to Silver Chain when they are estimated to have about three months left.

“There is no continuity of care. We build up a rapport with the patient and family and then we have to hand them over to Silver Chain to die.

“Silver Chain expect us to chase all the information for them but once we hand patients over, they are not even allowed to access our phone service.

“Our nurses are not even told when the people they have been caring for have died.

“It is not about giving patients greater choice; it actually denies them the right to choose.”

Nurses also question why Silver Chain has permission to access hospital records through the Cerner IT system, when other NGOs cannot.

Hundreds of nurses and midwives have considered the moral and ethical challenges of assisted dying and voted in support of the need for legislative change to occur in New South Wales.

More than 500 delegates attending the 72^nd Annual Conference of the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA) endorsed an updated position on behalf of their 64,000 nursing and midwifery colleagues.

NSWNMA President Coral Levett acknowledged the widespread community debate on assisted dying and why it was imperative for nurses and midwives to have a well-informed position on the topic.

“Assisted dying is a complex social issue and as nursing and midwifery professionals we are often caught in the crosshairs of this debate, either directly during our daily working roles or when discussions arise within our community or family circles,” Ms Levett said.

“We represent a very diverse membership and we strongly believe that nurses, midwives and assistants in nursing are entitled to their own opinion, however, we also acknowledge that people with a terminal or incurable illness should have the right to choose to die with dignity.

“Seven countries around the globe have legalised assisted dying and this empowers over 100 million people with the full choice about what happens to them at the end of their life. Currently, not one Australian is afforded this choice and that is why legislative reform is so important.”

A number of opinion polls conducted between 2007 and 2016 show around 80 per cent of Australian’s are in favour of assisted dying being available to those with terminal or incurable illness.

Ms Levett confirmed the NSWNMA would continue to lobby all levels of government to ensure adequate resourcing of palliative care services, including the availability of suitably qualified nurses and midwives.

“This is a very important issue for the nursing profession. Given our compassion for those who suffer and our concern for quality of life being afforded to every individual, this is an issue worth fighting for to ensure the right balance is achieved and all sides of the debate are well considered,” Ms Levett said.

Nursing and midwifery delegates from across the state are gathered at Sydney’s Rosehill Gardens Grand Pavilion for the NSWNMA’s 72^nd Annual Conference.

Download this media release: Nurses and midwives support majority on dying with dignity