Four hospices are working together in a new collaboration to change the way specialist palliative and end of life care is delivered across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent.

Compton Care, Dougie Mac, Katharine House Hospice and St Giles Hospice have come together to deliver the Rapid Response and Hospice Virtual Ward.

Backed by investment from NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (ICB), the initiative aims to expand hospice services across the county and benefit "hundreds more patients".

The four hospices hope to allow more people to access care closer to home, remain in their preferred place of care and avoid unnecessary hospital admissions, in what they believe to be one of the first collaborations of its kind in England,

David Webster, Chief Executive of Dougie Mac Hospice, said: "As an independent hospice with over half a century of experience caring for palliative and end of life patients and their families, Dougie Mac has a reputation for innovation and sustainable growth in services, as well as a recent "Outstanding" rating from our regulator the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

"However, this unique collaboration of four hospices across Staffordshire feels like a genuine landmark event.

"Not only have we secured collective funding for the next two years to provide specialist support beyond the extensive community services we already deliver, but by unifying our resources and expertise we have shown that hospices can spearhead essential change in our health system.

"We may even have created a template for others to follow, with the voluntary sector and the NHS partnering in a way that provides personalised, joined up care to people when they most need it, whilst freeing up valuable NHS beds.

"The four hospices share a goal of expanding hospice care at home, preventing unnecessary admissions to hospital and widening access to specialist, holistic, hospice care. This pioneering collaboration helps us do that at scale!

"Hundreds more patients will benefit from our collective approach and I'm personally delighted and proud to be part of this contemporary example of hospice care."

The initiative will build on the hospices' 24-hour Specialist Advice and Referral Line, which provides access to expert advice and support across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent,

The investment will support the expansion of specialist rapid response and palliative crisis intervention services.

This aims to ensure that expert hospice care is more readily available when a patient's condition changes or urgent support is needed.

The services also hope to support people to leave hospital sooner, where appropriate, with specialist hospice teams helping patients return home or move to another care setting.

Specialist hospice teams will work closely with NHS partners to provide coordinated support when needs change, helping more people remain in their preferred place of care and offering families access to expert guidance.

A spokesperson for Dougie Mac said: "By working together, the four hospices are creating a stronger voice for hospice care, developing new ways of working and demonstrating the value of collaboration between the voluntary sector and the NHS.

"Most importantly, people across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent will benefit from more responsive, joined up and personalised support."