Abstract

Research has repeatedly shown that patients of low socio-economic status (SES) are less likely to be referred to palliative home care, yet the causes remain unclear. This study has investigated whether and how SES variations relate to referral where hospice at home (H@H) provision is held constant. St Ann’s hospice’s H@H service serves 41 electoral wards across the localities of Salford and Trafford with wide ranging socio-economic and health status. Findings confirm a clear relationship between key socio-economic indicators of deprivation and referrals to the H@H service delivered across Salford and Trafford, the lowest referring wards being the most deprived, with the converse true for areas of highest socio-economic status. Results indicate that inequalities of access to Hospice at Home are related to deprivation indicators at the population level. Findings will allow the research team to generate hypotheses for in depth investigation in a subsequent research project.