Hospice Services in Somerset

St Margaret’s Hospice Care provides support and care to patients across the majority of Somerset. Patients in East Mendip are normally supported by Dorothy House Hospice, and those in North Somerset supported by Weston Hospice care. There is overlap at times, with the care of some patients shared between hospices.

Hospice hubs and services

St Margaret’s hospice buildings in Yeovil and Taunton deliver a wide range of services (see summary below). Additional hospice community teams are located in Minehead, Bridgwater and Glastonbury.

Community services

Our community, day hospice and outpatient services continue to be provided across the county. This includes the 24-hour advice line, domiciliary appointments and full therapy and multidisciplinary team provision.

While we are not an emergency or urgent care service, hospice clinicians will be available to provide telephone advice along with both planned and unplanned visits to patients in the community. Requests for same day visits by hospice community specialists cannot be guaranteed but will be prioritised alongside current workload. Our community service which includes specialist nurses, therapy and medical staff will be extended further to support patients and families at home, via the advice line, in care homes and community hospitals, with some services extending across seven days per week.

On referral to our Community Nursing team our first contact with you will be via telephone triage or video consultation. During this consultation we will work with you to agree priorities of care and mutually agree an initial visit/ contact plan.

In-Patient services

Admissions to the Taunton hospice specialist In-Patient Unit are assessed by need regardless of where in the county patients reside. Referrals for In-Patient admissions are reviewed and prioritised daily.

We also consider with referrers if there are other settings where patients could receive appropriate care with additional support from St Margaret’s community teams and 24-hour advice line. This may include community hospital beds, if 24-hour nursing care is needed but less specialist or complex input is required.

How we provide care and support in Somerset

All our teams work together to support patients and families in the community in a proactive way, being able to plan care in advance with patients about what their future needs might be. We work closely alongside the NHS and adult social care community teams, to anticipate and prepare for the changing needs that our patients may have, provide services across the county and further support for the 24-hour advice line.

We couldn’t do this without you

Without the generous support of our local community we would not be able to offer care and support to around 5,000 people each year. You can support the hospice in a number of ways: