TWO charities and a health trust have teamed up to launch a unique and vital service to offer nursing care to people with terminal illnesses in their own home.

St Teresa’s Hospice and Marie Curie Cancer Care have developed the Darlington Community Rapid Response Team to care for patients, support families and prevent unnecessary hospital admissions as part of end-of-life care.

The service, supported by County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, provides palliative nurses who can respond to patients in the community within an hour.

Health professionals will be able to call the specialist team to provide patients with the correct care either in their own home, or another place of their choice, as part of a preferred treatment programme.

The scheme started less than six weeks ago and has at least 18 months of funding. It will be available round-the-clock anywhere in Darlington.

So far, it has made nine hospital admissions, each of which are estimated to cost £2,500, unnecessary.

Jane Bradshaw, director of Darlington-based St Teresa’s, said: “It is a flagship development and a shining example to others of how organisations can get together and achieve something, particularly during these difficult economic times. It is important that we don’t duplicate services.

“This rapid response team is designed to enhance and complement services such as the skilled community nurses team, prevent unnecessary hospital admissions and give patients care in their preferred place of choice.”

Karen Torley, area nursing manager for Marie Curie, said: “This partnership is an excellent example of how charities can pool expertise and resources to deliver an innovative service that will really benefit local people at the end of their lives.

“Marie Curie has long campaigned for people to be looked after in their place of choice. This project does exactly that.

"The team has already had a lot of referrals and provided care for people in their own homes and local care homes, preventing unnecessary admissions to hospital.”

Edmund Lovell, of County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We would rather see services like this, where there is planning for people who are coming to their end of life. It is a service which has a much higher quality and better experience for patients and their families.”

To access the rapid response team, call 07720-947430.