Palliative care assistant
Palliative care assistants provide specialist care and support to people living with serious illness and those reaching the end of their life.
Typical Salary
£23,000 – £28,000
per year
Working Hours
40–42
hours per week
Day-to-day tasks
As a palliative care assistant you could:
- apply simple wound dressings and give medication
- change medical equipment like catheters and make sure equipment is cleaned and stored correctly
- support the emotional wellbeing of a patient and their family
- care for the person's body after death
- update patient records
Skills needed
- sensitivity and understanding
- the ability to work well with others
- the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
- patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
- to be thorough and pay attention to detail
- customer service skills
- knowledge of psychology
- excellent verbal communication skills
- to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device
How to get into this role
You can get into this job through:
- a college course
- an apprenticeship
- applying directly
Career progression
With experience and training, you could become a senior healthcare assistant.
You could also take additional training and move into other healthcare roles like:
You could also train as a health professional like a midwife, nurse or physiotherapist.