Guidance for professionals

Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has published the first ever guidance of its kind to support staff caring for very young babies with life limiting conditions who need palliative or end of life care.

The Practical guidance for the management of palliative care on neonatal units was formally launched on 13 February 2014 at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.

Despite advances in neonatal medicine, many babies will suffer from conditions that mean they will not survive longer than months, days or a few minutes. The purpose of the guidance is to help clinical staff deliver care for babies that is of the highest quality, and provide families with the support they require.

The guidance was developed by members of the neonatal team at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital that included doctors, a nurse, a psychologist and a hospital chaplain. It has been endorsed by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health after several rounds of stakeholder consultation, including key charitable organisations and professionals within the field of neonatal palliative care. The development of the guidance was funded by the Department of Health and the production and publication was supported by hospital charity CW+. The guidance includes a foreword by Sir Bruce Keogh, National Medical Director for NHS England and real-life experiences of families whose babies have received such care.

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Full details of the methodology, including the search strategy for the systematic review of the literature, summary of the evidence, the drawing up of the recommendations and the consultation process are detailed in the supporting documents.