After you are admitted, members of our team will meet with you to learn how we can best support your needs.

We believe in whole-person care which means we support your medical needs as well as your emotional, social and spiritual well-being. Family members, staff and volunteers are all part of your care team.

We can provide a wide range of treatments and interventions if they are consistent with your care goals or provide symptom relief.

If your condition stabilizes or improves, or if your care goals change, we can work with you and your family to help you leave the hospital. This might include arranging for home care or moving to another facility where you can receive support.

Patients are referred to our unit from acute-care hospitals and home care.

Health-care teams from acute care hospitals can refer patients through the RMR system or by faxing this Palliative Care Common referral form to 416-785-2471.

The Palliative Care Unit can accept patients who fit the following criteria:

• Age 55 and older with a terminal illness requiring palliative care
• Medically stable, without need of acute-care interventions
• If the patient smokes, can do so safely and make their own arrangements to reach the outdoor smoking areas
• Both patient and substitute decision maker understand the goals of palliative care and the reason for admission
• An expected prognosis of 90 days or less
• Agree to be discharged to an appropriate destination if the patient’s condition or care needs stabilize

We are unable to accept patients with the following needs:

• Dialysis
• Mechanical ventilation
• Bi-level positive airway pressure (BiPAP) machines
• Nasogastric tube
• Cuffed tracheostomy tube
• Greater than 50 per cent oxygen
• Total parenteral nutrition
• Bariatric equipment
• Resuscitation requests
• Life-prolonging active intervention or treatment

We will consider patients with the following needs on a case-by-case basis:

• Feeding tubes
• Oral or intravenous (IV) antibiotics
• Blood tests
• Peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) lines or other IV access
• Tracheostomies
• Blood transfusions
• Physiotherapy (PT) or occupational therapy (OT)
• Under the skin infusions of fluid for hydration

Please note that the 90-day prognosis is not a strict barrier to admission. We understand there is uncertainty in estimating a prognosis. Our main goal is to support people with serious illness, and we approach each admission with compassion.

However, many palliative care needs can be met in other settings, like home care or other facilities. If a patient does not need the specialized services of our unit, we can help find them the right level of care.

A note about our Medical Assistance In Dying (MAID) policy: Baycrest is a Jewish faith-based organization and is committed to treating each individual with respect, dignity and compassion. Baycrest hospital does not provide Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID). Referring health-care professionals should inform the patient that Baycrest does not provide MAID, but will support a transfer to another location for the administration of MAID.