If you have had a change to your financial status due to illness, you can request a Social Work referral. This can be through Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand Hospital services or the Hospice Palliative Care service.
This subsidy is available to people who are dying from any condition. It covers most of the cost of that person's general practice visits for the last few months of their life. If you are eligible, your general practice team will apply for this subsidy on your behalf.
The information in this section comes from the following sources, some of which may be clinically complex or not available to the general public
Canterbury Community HealthPathways – Cough in palliative care, retrieved December 2016.
Canterbury Community HealthPathways – Dyspnoea in palliative care, retrieved December 2016.
Canterbury Community HealthPathways – Pruritus (itch) in palliative care, retrieved December 2016.
Canterbury Community HealthPathways – Weakness and fatigue in palliative care, retrieved December 2016.
Canterbury DHB – Palliative care guidelines (http://cdhb.palliativecare.org.nz/4207.htm), retrieved August 2016.
Nurse Maude – Symptom management, retrieved December 2016.
Palliative Care Australia – Facts about morphine and other opioid medicines in palliative care, retrieved February 2017.
Palliative Care Australia – Learn more about pain and pain management, retrieved February 2017.
South Island Alliance – Health of older people useful resources (https://www.sialliance.health.nz/programmes/health-of-older-people/useful-resources/), retrieved September 2022.
UpToDate – Managing pain when you have cancer, retrieved February 2017.
Image and embedded video sources
Image of a car driving towards snow-capped mountains from mychillybin (image ID 100128_358). November 2016.
Image of a carer helping an elderly woman from Shutterstock (image ID 71309584). November 2016.
Image of a child ill in bed playing cards from Shutterstock (image ID 222626227). November 1016.
Image of a confused elderly man in bed being comforted from Shutterstock (image ID 1897170943). November 2022.
Image of a couple driving a car from Shutterstock (image ID 174939050). November 2016.
Image of a cup of lemon and ginger drink from Shutterstock (image ID 262006217). November 2016.
Image of a glass or water and pills from Shutterstock (image ID 176139605). March 2017.
Image of a nauseous woman from Shutterstock (image ID 174166217). November 2017.
Image of a person counting out pills into their hand from Shutterstock (image ID 251002813). November 2016.
Image of a person peeling oranges from Shutterstock (image ID 404915464). February 2017.
Image of a sick person lying in bed with their mouth open from Shutterstock (image ID 553734718). February 2017.
Image of a woman eating an apple from Shutterstock (image ID 173814083). February 2017.
Image of a woman looking at a pill and holding a glass of water from Shutterstock (image ID 145621765). November 2016.
Image of a woman lying back holding a cushion from Shutterstock (image ID 313042859). February 2017.
Image of a woman using a nasal spray from Shutterstock (image ID 342285080). October 2016.
Image of a woman who doesn't feel like eating from Shutterstock (image ID 151886909). February 2017.
Image of an elderly breathless woman leaning on a tree from Shutterstock (image ID 181672562). February 2017.
Image of an elderly man blowing bubbles with a child from Shutterstock (image ID 305524514). November 2016.
Image of an ill woman lying in bed from Shutterstock (image ID 319248689), February 2017.
Image of someone pouring medicine from Shutterstock (image ID 550073806). February 2017.
Image of someone putting cream on their hands from Shutterstock (image ID 193623662). February 2017.