How ambulance wishes are made.
As soon as our Wish Ambulance is operational we aim to start fulfilling wishes to terminally ill West Australians. To be an eligible wish recipient, they should be under the care of a specialist palliative care services so we can discuss any specific medical requirements with your care team.
You can access palliative care if you have been diagnosed with a life-limiting illness, no matter your age or stage of illness. You can access palliative care early in the course of your illness, even while still receiving other treatments such as chemotherapy, dialysis and alternative therapies. Palliative care sees death and dying as a normal part of life. It does not try to shorten life and it does not try to make life longer – instead it helps you live as well as possible. It can support you as well as your carers, friends and family.
Palliative care aims to give you the best possible quality of life rather than finding a cure for your illness. It does not mean the end of treatment – it means making choices about which treatments are important to you and which are not.
Palliative care is based on your needs, so support and services vary from person to person. The care provided can include: relief of pain and other symptoms (e.g. nausea, shortness of breath); support to live as actively as possible until death; equipment to help you live at home, such as wheelchairs or special beds; support for you to meet your cultural obligations; counselling and grief support for you, your family and loved ones; support for your emotional, social and spiritual concerns; and access to support services (e.g. respite care, home help, financial support). Speak to your doctor about your options and preferences for palliative care.
Helping Ambulance Wish Western Australia fundraise for a Wish Ambulance will allow us to start fulfilling these last wishes by donating via our website. If this is not an option in these challenging times, you can help by sharing our posts and news to raise awareness of our aim – to grant the final, simple wishes of the terminally ill.
