Inpatient services

There are several reasons people are referred to us for inpatient care, and our treatment is best described as “active supportive care”. Our main aim is to enhance your quality of life, and we’ll do all we can to ensure that you’re comfortable during your stay with us.

Our team of staff have specialist training in many different areas. Together, they’ll not only provide excellent nursing and medical care, they’ll also look after your emotional, spiritual, social and psychological needs.

Our inpatient wards are a mix of single and multi-bedded wards, which are always single sex. We have side wards and larger family rooms, which are allocated depending on the individual needs of our patients.

Referral criteria for inpatient care

Referrals are accepted for patients with a diagnosis of an advanced, progressive life-limiting illness who have associated complex specialist palliative care needs.

Referral can be made for one or more of the following reasons:

• Complex symptom control e.g. intractable vomiting, pain and agitation
• Complex psychological and/or spiritual need e.g. severe anxiety and depression
• Complex social need e.g. crisis intervention
• Rehabilitation assessment following radiotherapy, chemotherapy, surgery or other palliative interventions
• Care of the dying patient with specialist palliative care needs

You’ll be admitted for an assessment period, and the length of your stay will depend on your individual needs. The average assessment period is up to two weeks. After this, we’ll look at your present and future needs and how these can be met by St Ann’s or other organisations.

Before being admitted

We know that hospices can be a little daunting, especially if you’ve never visited one before, so before being admitted you and your family, friends or carers are welcome to come and have a look around. Please ask the person who has referred you, or contact us directly to arrange this.  

What happens when you’re admitted

When you arrive at our inpatient unit, you can expect a warm and friendly welcome from our specialist team whose top priority is your comfort and dignity – we are here to help you and your loved ones in any way we can.

You’ll be assessed by a doctor and a nurse and you, and your family, friends or carer, will also have the chance to ask questions. You’ll be given a Bedside Booklet, which explains in detail all aspects of inpatient care including visiting, food and drink, and all the services you may benefit from. However, our staff are here to answer any questions you may have at any point.

We provide a learning environment for students who are undertaking training. All students who provide care are supervised by a trained member of staff.

Visitors

Updated visitor policy

*To protect patients, visitors, volunteers and staff, we’ve made some changes to our visitor policies with immediate effect. You can read them here.

Our visiting hours are 11am – 8pm. We ask for a maximum of three visitors per bed at any one time, as large groups may be overwhelming for some patients.

If possible, we ask visitors to try and avoid mealtimes (breakfast: 8 – 8.30am, lunch: 12.30 – 1pm, dinner: 5 – 5.30pm) as we encourage a quiet environment to help patients enjoy their food and concentrate on eating.

Additional visitors are very welcome to sit in the coffee shop or one of the sitting areas whilst they wait. Children are very welcome and play areas are available, but they must be supervised by a responsible adult at all times.

We understand that sometimes visits outside these hours are required, and this can be agreed on an individual basis. We also have limited facilities for relatives to stay overnight. Please ask at the hospice if you would like to use these facilities.

All visitors must sign the visitor book at reception when they arrive, and sign out when they leave.

St Ann’s Hospice is a safe environment, where people with life-limiting illnesses are cared for. Most patients and visitors treat our staff and volunteers with the respect that they deserve. Verbally or physically abusive, threatening or violent behaviour will not be tolerated.

If visitors are unwell, they should consider waiting until they are feeling better before visiting the hospice. Illnesses such as the flu, colds, diarrhoea and vomiting can spread very quickly in healthcare settings.

Family and carers can phone day or night to enquire about patients, and a cordless phone is available so they can speak to patients directly. The number to ring is Heald Green: 0161 437 8136 or Little Hulton: 0161 702 8181.

Smoking at St Ann’s

For more information about smoking at the hospice, please click here.

How you can be referred

You can be referred through your GP, palliative care specialist nurse (including Macmillan and District Nurses) and a doctor or consultant at a hospital.