For patients with advanced cancer and other life-limiting illnesses, palliative care often needs to extend beyond hospital wards to their homes, where families grapple with pain, emotional distress, and the demands of long-term caregiving. 

At the State-run Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology (KMIO), the Department of Palliative Medicine has made home-based care a key part of its services, reporting more than 750 home-care visits, over 12,000 km travelled and more than 3,000 beneficiaries, including patients and caregivers.

These services were highlighted while observing World Hospice and Palliative Care Day on October 10, which this year carried the theme ‘Pain management: An essential part of palliative care’.

“With the help of volunteers and NGOs, we also extend financial support for children’s education. We provide waterbed and airbed, ration kits, and nebuliser machines for use at home. It is not just about treating the patient,” M.K. Yadhuraj Gowda, Head of the Department of Palliative Medicine at KMIO, told The Hindu.

The home-care service is intended for patients who find it difficult to travel to the hospital because of advanced illness, reduced mobility, or other challenges. Multidisciplinary teams provide medical assessment, symptom management, nursing care, and support in familiar surroundings, helping reduce the burden of repeated hospital visits.

The department’s approach also recognises that serious illness affects entire families. Caregivers may need help managing the practical demands of looking after a patient, as well as support in coping with emotional and financial pressures, Dr. Gowda said.

Palliative care also includes bereavement support for families after the death of a loved one. KMIO’s department provides guidance to help family members cope with grief, manage emotional distress and access support during the grieving process.

The service reflects the broader role of palliative care, which addresses not only physical pain and other symptoms but also the psychological, emotional, social and spiritual needs of patients and their families. Volunteer services add another layer of support for families navigating serious illness and loss.

Institute director R. Krishnappa said the department provides inpatient palliative care for patients who require specialised management of pain and other distressing symptoms, with capacity for more than 30 patients. Its services include medication and interventional procedures such as nerve blocks and neurolysis for selected patients with severe cancer-related pain that remains inadequately controlled with conventional treatment.

It also provides paediatric palliative care, with age-appropriate pain and symptom management, emotional support and guidance for families caring for children with cancer and other serious illnesses, he said.

Music and sound therapy sessions are conducted for inpatients on Wednesdays, while yoga therapy sessions are held on Thursdays to promote relaxation and emotional well-being alongside medical treatment.

Teleconsultations extend specialist support

The department has relaunched its ‘Call for Care - Neravina Kare’ service to connect patients living outside Bengaluru and in distant locations with specialist palliative care. Through telephone and video consultations, a team comprising a palliative care physician, nurse and clinical psycho-oncologist offers guidance on symptom management and emotional support. Patients and caregivers can contact the service on 9008441708.