RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 34 Specialist palliative care providers’ perspectives on how to meet the service delivery challenges in adult care homes in england: a national survey JF BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care JO BMJ Support Palliat Care FD British Medical Journal Publishing Group SP 372 OP 373 DO 10.1136/bmjspcare-2018-mariecurie.34 VO 8 IS 3 A1 Alisha Newman A1 Gemma Allnatt A1 Nicola Bowtell A1 Kerry Archer-Dutton A1 Anita Hayes A1 Mirella Longo A1 Andy Pring A1 Amanda Read A1 Ros Taylor A1 Julia Verne A1 Annmarie Nelson YR 2018 UL http://spcare.bmj.com/content/8/3/372.2.abstract AB Introduction Care homes (CHs) play a vital role in the delivery of care towards the end of life (National Institute for Health Research 2017; Public Health England 2017) yet little is known about specialist palliative care (SPC) support in this setting.Aim To increase understanding of how SPC services support adult CHs in England and identify from a SPC provider perspective the challenges and enablers to good quality SPC.Method SPC services working directly with CHs in the community in England were invited to complete an online survey. Content analysis enabled qualitative data to be described.Results 108 services participated. A range of challenges were identified including CH staff turnover lack of funding and retention of CH staff knowledge skills and competency.Proposed ways to reduce/resolve challenges included:Increased commissioning of SPC staff to work directly with CHs particularly to provide education/trainingStrategic centralised and longer–term approaches to funding to facilitate continuity of support to CHsMandatory SPC core competencies and accessible training for CH staff to facilitate the prioritisation and uptake of trainingIncreased collaboration within and across organisations including regulators commissioners and providers of SPC CH and GP services to increase consistency and quality of SPC education and resident careConclusions The data are of national relevance and enhances our understanding of the challenges and potential enablers to CH support from a SPC provider perspective. Increased funding and cross-organisational collaboration are thought to be important instruments for change. The views of others including CH staff should be sought.References. National Institute for Health Research. Advancing care – Research with care homes 2017. Available at: https://www.dc.nihr.ac.uk/themed-reviews/care-home-research.htm [Accessed: 29th May 2018]. Public Health England. Briefing 1 – Care home bed provision and potential end of life care need in people aged 75 or older in England2017. Available at: http://www.endoflifecareintelligence.org.uk/resources/publications/carehomes [Accessed: 29th May 2018]