Palliative & End-of-Life Care
Palliative & End-of-Life Care
When someone you love is living with a life-limiting illness or approaching the end of their life, finding the right care can feel daunting. You want them to be comfortable and safe, but you also want them to remain themselves, surrounded by familiar people and treated with dignity.
At Iden Manor Nursing Home in Staplehurst, Kent, we provide compassionate palliative and end-of-life nursing care, 24 hours a day.
Our experienced nursing and care team supports people with complex and changing health needs, working alongside GPs and other healthcare professionals to manage symptoms, plan ahead and, wherever clinically appropriate, help residents remain at Iden Manor rather than experience an unnecessary move to hospital.
Our approach to end-of-life care has been independently recognised through the Gold Standards Framework (GSF) Quality Hallmark Award.
We welcome enquiries from families across Staplehurst, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells, Cranbrook, Tenterden, Headcorn, Marden, the wider Kent area and beyond
GSF Accredited End-of-Life Care
Iden Manor has achieved the Gold Standards Framework Quality Hallmark Award, recognising high standards in the care and management of people approaching the end of their lives.
Following our accreditation assessment, the GSF panel commended our team for their:
“dedication and passion to provide high quality end of life care.”
The Gold Standards Framework gives our team a structured approach to recognising when someone's health is changing, understanding their wishes, planning ahead and ensuring appropriate support is available at the right time.
For residents and families, that means care which is proactive rather than simply reactive.
GSF principles are embedded within our approach to nursing care, Advance Care Planning, communication with families and collaborative working with GPs and other healthcare professionals.
Helping Residents Remain in the Place They Call Home
For many people approaching the end of their life, an unexpected admission to hospital is not what they would choose.
Where it is clinically appropriate and consistent with a resident's wishes, our nursing team works proactively with GPs and other healthcare professionals to support them at Iden Manor.
This means recognising deterioration, anticipating changing symptoms, planning for medication and discussing preferences before a crisis occurs.
For the person and their family, this can mean spending precious time in familiar surroundings, with people they know and trust, rather than experiencing the disruption of an unnecessary hospital admission.
24-Hour Palliative Nursing Care
As a nursing home, Iden Manor has registered nursing support available 24 hours a day.
Our team cares for people with nursing, complex health and dementia-related needs and can provide palliative and end-of-life support as someone's condition changes.
Depending on individual clinical needs, this may include:
- pain and symptom assessment and management
- anticipatory medication
- personalised care planning for the final days of life
- monitoring comfort and changes in condition
- emotional, cultural and spiritual support
- liaison with GPs and other healthcare professionals
- sensitive communication with residents and families
- respectful care and support following death.
Our nurses are also trained in verification of death, helping care to continue calmly and respectfully within the home.
Advance Care Planning: Understanding What Matters to You
Good end-of-life care begins long before a person's final days.
Advance Care Planning gives residents an opportunity to talk about what matters to them and how they would like to be cared for should their health deteriorate.
This may include where they would prefer to receive care, the people they want involved in decisions, and any emotional, cultural or spiritual wishes that are important to them.
Where someone is unable to make a particular decision themselves, appropriate Mental Capacity Act and Best Interest processes are followed, involving those closest to the person and relevant healthcare professionals.
The purpose is not simply to create another care plan.
It is to understand the person behind it.
Living Well With a Life-Limiting Illness
Palliative care does not necessarily mean someone is in their final days.
It can support people living with serious, progressive or life-limiting conditions by helping to manage symptoms while protecting comfort and quality of life.
At Iden Manor, we believe living well remains important right through to the end of life.
Alongside nursing care, we continue to pay attention to the things that make someone themselves: their relationships, routines, interests, food, music, faith, conversation, time outdoors and the people they want around them.
Our clinical team proactively monitors changes in health and frailty and works with other healthcare professionals when additional specialist support is required.
Supporting Families Through End-of-Life Care
End-of-life care is never only about the person who is dying.
For families, this can be an extraordinarily difficult time. There may be sadness and anxiety, but also practical uncertainty. What happens next? What changes should we expect? Are they comfortable? Who should we speak to?
Our nurses and care team will talk openly and sensitively with you, explain what is happening and help you understand how your loved one is being supported.
Families are encouraged to remain close, particularly as someone approaches the final days of their life.
Our responsibility does not simply disappear after someone dies. We recognise bereavement and remembrance as an important part of supporting the people who have become part of the Iden Manor community.
Our memorial services also provide an opportunity for families, residents and colleagues to remember people who have been part of life at Iden Manor.
Palliative Care Following Hospital Discharge
Sometimes the need for palliative or end-of-life care arises while someone is already in hospital.
Our team can work with hospital discharge teams, GPs and other healthcare professionals to assess whether Iden Manor can safely meet the person's nursing and palliative care needs.
Every admission is individually assessed because people's circumstances and clinical needs differ.
Where an admission is appropriate, we understand that families may need decisions to be made quickly and sensitively.
A Culture of Compassion and Continuous Improvement
Achieving GSF accreditation was an important independent recognition of our approach, but we do not see accreditation as an endpoint.
Our team continues to review and reflect on the care we provide, learning from residents, families and colleagues.
End-of-life care forms part of our clinical governance and staff development processes, helping us maintain a thoughtful and consistent approach throughout Iden Manor.
Because excellent care should never stand still.
A Message from Our Clinical Lead
“Supporting someone at the end of their life is one of the greatest privileges in care. For me, palliative care is about putting the person first, understanding what matters most to them and doing everything we can to honour their wishes.
Every person's journey is unique, so our role is not to take over their life, but to shape our support around their individual needs. We strive to remove the burdens that may stand in their way, allowing them to remain themselves, maintain their dignity and focus on the people, moments and experiences that bring them comfort, meaning and joy.
We also recognise that end-of-life care is about those closest to the person. We work to create an environment where families feel welcomed, supported and able to spend precious time together, making memories that will stay with them forever. When family is not there, we ensure nobody faces the end of life alone.
Ultimately, our goal is simple: to help every resident live as well as possible for as long as possible and, when the time comes, to experience a peaceful and dignified death surrounded by compassion, comfort and care.”
Aditya Puryag
Clinical Lead, Iden Manor Nursing Home
Frequently Asked Questions About Palliative & End-of-Life Care
Palliative care supports people living with serious, progressive or life-limiting illness. Its focus is on relieving symptoms, maintaining comfort and supporting the best possible quality of life.
It can be provided alongside other treatment and does not necessarily mean that someone is in the final days of their life.
End-of-life care supports someone who is approaching the final stage of their life. It focuses on comfort, dignity, symptom management, individual wishes and emotional support for both the person and those close to them.
Palliative care can begin much earlier during a serious or life-limiting illness. End-of-life care generally describes care provided as someone enters the final phase of life.
Both approaches place comfort, dignity and the person's individual wishes at the centre of care.
Yes. Iden Manor is a nursing home with registered nursing support available 24 hours a day.
Every prospective resident is individually assessed to make sure we can safely meet their particular nursing and palliative care needs.
Yes. Iden Manor has achieved the Gold Standards Framework Quality Hallmark Award, independently recognising the quality of our approach to end-of-life care.
Where it remains clinically appropriate and reflects the resident's wishes, our nursing team will work with GPs and other healthcare professionals to support the person at Iden Manor and reduce unnecessary transfers to hospital.
Potentially, yes.
We can assess people who require nursing or palliative care following a hospital stay and work with hospital discharge teams and other healthcare professionals where appropriate.
Whether we can accept someone will depend upon their individual clinical and nursing needs and our ability to safely meet them.
We can consider urgent enquiries and assess the person's individual needs promptly.
Whether an admission is possible will depend upon their clinical requirements and our ability to safely provide the care they need. Please contact our team directly if the situation is urgent.
Yes.
Where the resident has capacity, their own wishes remain central to decisions about their care. Families and others important to them are involved appropriately, particularly through Advance Care Planning and, where necessary, Best Interest discussions.
Yes. We recognise how important it is for families to be together at this time.
Our team will work with you to enable you to remain close to your loved one and discuss any practical arrangements you may need.
Yes, subject to an individual assessment of their needs.
Iden Manor supports people living with dementia as well as nursing and complex health needs. Where someone with dementia requires palliative or end-of-life care, their care is planned around the individual, their wishes and needs, with appropriate involvement from those important to them.
Talk to Our Nursing Team
Perhaps your relative's health has deteriorated, they are currently in hospital, or you have reached the point where you need to understand what care and support is available.
Talk to us about what is happening and what matters to your family.
Our experienced team will listen, answer your questions and help you understand the care we can provide and the next steps.
We welcome enquiries from families across Staplehurst, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells, Cranbrook, Tenterden, Headcorn, Marden the wider Kent area and beyond.
Book A Visit
Come in for a Visit
The best way to understand Palliative & End-of-Life Care at Iden Manor is to experience it for yourself. We’d love to welcome you, show you around, and answer any questions you may have.
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Iden Manor Nursing Home, Cranbrook Road Staplehurst Kent TN12 0ER
PHONE
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