Make a referral
We welcome referrals from GPs and other professionals. Please see below for how to refer to each of our services.
If the situation is urgent, please call us on 01865 857036 and ask for the triage senior nurse or duty consultant.
How to make a referral to our inpatient services or community team
Please make referrals using the e-Referral service.
If you would like to discuss the referral, please call 01865 857036 and ask for the triage senior nurse or duty consultant.
To find out more about the inpatient services available at Sobell House, please visit our Inpatient Care page.
How to make a referral to our day services
Please make referrals using the e-Referral service.
If you would like to discuss the referral, please call us on 01865 225875.
To find out more about the inpatient services available at Sobell House, please visit our Day Centre page.
How to make a referral to our hospital palliative care team
Please make referrals using the e-Referral service.
Alternatively, during working hours at the Churchill and Nuffield Orthopaedic Hospitals, please call 01865 223585 to make a direct referral, or at the John Radcliffe please call 01865 221741 to make a direct referral.
To find out more about our hospital palliative care team, please visit our Support in Hospital page.
How to make a referral to the lymphoedema service
GP referral can be made by using this referral form. Please include medical history, current treatments, any past or ongoing investigations.
If you would like to discuss the referral, you can contact the lymphoedema service by email to [email protected] or call them on 01865 225864.
To find out more about the lymphoedema service, please visit our Lymphoedema Services page.
How to make a referral to our bereavement service
Our bereavement service is able to offer a range of support services to adult bereaved relatives, friends and carers of deceased patients that have been cared for by Sobell House Hospice, Oxford University Hospital Trust Palliative Care Team, or another Palliative Care Service in the UK or abroad.
Referrals into the service can be made by calling 01865 225878, emailing [email protected] or by writing to the Bereavement Service Co-ordinator at Sobell House Hospice, Churchill Hospital, Old Road, Headington, Oxford OX3 7LE.
Usually the bereaved will contact the service directly, but with their consent, we will accept a referral from another person such as a family member or a health, social care or education professional. Once a referral has been received, we will contact the referee by telephone to discuss their needs, obtain necessary referral information, and answer any questions concerning accessing support through the Bereavement Service. We aim to contact all referred people within five working days of receipt.
If the bereaved lives outside the catchment area of the hospice and would prefer to access help from an alternative service in their vicinity, we will endeavour to provide information and support in contacting a suitable support service.
The Bereavement Service is not open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so if the situation is deemed as an emergency please contact the relevant GP Practice, Mental Health or Social Services Department.
Sobell House Bereavement Service primarily offers support to adults. If your concern is for a bereaved child or adolescent, please contact SeeSaw, an Oxford based service that specializes in offering grief support to children and young people in Oxfordshire.
To find out more about the bereavement support available at Sobell House, please visit our Bereavement Support page.
The palliative care service provided by Sobell House is a specialist service. The service is designed for patients and their families when:
- The patient has a life limiting condition and is (usually) in the last year of their life
AND (one or all of the following) - The patient has physical symptoms and/or functional needs not responding to current management strategies
- The patient and/or their family have psychological or spiritual symptoms relating to the life limiting condition that are not responding to current management strategies
- The patient and/or family wish to engage in advance care planning which other services feel unable to support
AND - These needs cannot be better met by another service
Additional criteria may apply to specific to parts of the service:
- Inpatient unit – the patient is imminently dying, wishes to die in a hospice and Sobell ward has the capacity to meet these needs.
- Day services – the patient has a life limiting condition and may benefit from a focused time-limited programme to enhance self-management and resilience
- Lymphoedema service – the patient has primary and other non-cancer related lymphoedema
- Bereavement service – in addition to individuals whose relative has died under the care of Sobell House, those whose relative has died under the care of another hospice or hospital but who live in our area
Whilst we try to meet the needs of all those above who need and want our support, we may have to prioritise according to need if and when our capacity is limited.