The mortality rate from chronic liver disease in the UK is rising rapidly and patients with advanced disease often have a high symptom burden. Many factors limit widespread provision of good palliative care to these patients, including the unpredictable trajectory of chronic liver disease, the misconception that palliative care and end-of-life care are synonymous, lack of confidence in prescribing, and lack of time and resources. Liver disease is strongly associated with significant social, psychological and financial hardships for patients and their carers; strategies which involve the wider multidisciplinary team at an early stage help ensure proactive management of such issues.

This lecture will discuss specific care needs of patients with advanced chronic liver disease, present examples of current best practice, and provide suggestions for how palliative and disease modifying care can be provided in parallel.

The handout for this session is available by clicking the handout icon on the bottom right-hand corner of the video player
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    Dr Hazel Woodland
    Clinical Research Fellow in Hepatology, University of Bristol

    Hazel is a gastroenterology speciality trainee currently completing subspeciality training in hepatology. Her research focused on improving end-of-life care for patients with chronic liver disease, in particular examining feasibility, acceptability, and impact of early integration of palliative care into the management of patients with advanced liver disease and also the experiences of lay carers of patients with this condition. She has collaborated with Public Health England to identify inequities that exist in end-of-life care for patients with chronic liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma. She is a member of the British Association for the Study of the Liver (BASL) End of Life Special Interest Group.