Physiotherapy &
Occupational Therapy
Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy are offered across the Finchley and Barrowell Green sites and provide services in:
- The Inpatient Unit
- Outpatients: in the Boroughs of Barnet Enfield & Haringey
- The Community: in the Boroughs of Barnet and Enfield, visiting you in your own home
Main aims
Rehabilitation, Self-Management, Symptom Management & Wellbeing are our main focal points.
We aim to assist people to:
- Maintain their independence
- Maximise quality of life
- Work towards their personal goals
- Manage their symptoms & the effects of different treatments
After an initial assessment, patients can be signposted to access the right service to help them. This may be in the form of further one to one sessions or group invitation.
Our services can help with:
Managing Breathlessness
This can include individual assessment of breathlessness and its impact, development of a tailored management programme. We run a course on breathlessness and fatigue management every 3-4 months.
To find out more about managing breathlessness, have a look at these helpful videos from St Christopher’s Hospice.
Managing Fatigue
This can include one to one assessment to establish impact and intensity of fatigue, the therapist can then work with the individual and their family to develop a fatigue management programme. In addition there is the breathlessness and fatigue management group we run every 3-4 months.
Relaxation
Relaxation can be a useful component in managing a range of symptoms; breathlessness, fatigue, pain, anxiety and low mood. It can also be a positive strategy in maintaining good mental health. We can teach relaxation techniques in one to one sessions and also run a relaxation course every 3-4 months.
Pain management
This can include advice and strategies to support managing pain alongside the use of pain medication.
Mobility/Balance
This will include a mobility & or balance assessment with a subsequent tailored management plan, specific to your needs.
Falls Management
We provide advice & education on the management of falls to help reduce this risk for our patients. We also run a falls prevention group which is run according to referral/demand.
Living with purpose
This is a programme comprising of 3 half-day workshops to support people who are struggling with a loss of identity, change in role or loss of previous routines. It provides a safe space for people to reflect and start to rebuild self-esteem, confidence and a gain a renewed sense of purpose and meaning.
Functional activities of daily living
This involves one to one assessment of an individuals needs to develop person centred goals. We aim to enable people to function at an optimal level despite barriers. Assessment often happens at home and we can look at what can be modified or adapted to make things easier.
Vocational Rehab
This is one to one support, to enable individuals to overcome barriers to accessing, maintaining or returning to employment or other occupation.
Prehabilitation & Rehabilitation
This means enhancing general health & wellbeing, before treatments which can help to optimise tolerance and recovery.
Referral information for Professionals
All patients need to be referred to North London Hospice (NLH) using the SPA referral form. Further information regarding refferals and our referral criteria can be found here. Our NLH first contact team will be able to help with any questions regarding referrals.
Referrals to our Physiotherapy & Occupational Therapy team are made internally by our palliative care Nurses or Doctors following a holistic needs assessment.
Direct referrals can be made to our Fatigue & Breathlessness Course. This is for patients to attend the course only and are not under our clinical care. The course comprises of five, 90-minute sessions that run consecutively over five weeks. The group runs four times a year & can be attended either in person or remotely.
To refer to the course please complete the SPA referral as above and state fatigue and breathlessness course in the reason for referral.
