General Information
Palliative care is an approach to care that focuses on improving quality of life, managing pain/distressing symptoms and providing a support system to help people living with life-limiting illnesses to continue their days with quality and dignity.
While it’s often thought that palliative care is for when you are close to end of life, it is fitting to connect with a palliative care team at any time you are ready to accept this kind of care and support. You can still be receiving active treatment for an illness, and your palliative care team will partner with you to manage pain and symptoms, help you to plan for the future, and share your wishes with the important people in your life
Scarborough Health Network is proud to be home to the Rowntree Palliative Care Centre, providing palliative care services through outpatient visits, support, and resources, as well as to patients staying in our hospital. Our care is person and family-centered and provides by a team that respects your social, spiritual and cultural practices. We work closely with our community partners through Scarborough Palliative Care to provide you with seamless access to pain and symptom management, advance care planning, and end of life care everywhere in Scarborough.
It is thanks to the tremendously generous donation of $5 million from Mr. Rowntree that SHN is able to offer the Bryan and Bette Rowntree Palliative Care Clinical Centre Program.
Our Services
SHN Rowntree Palliative Care Centre
Our Rowntree Palliative Care Centre provides specialist palliative care consultation by physicians and nurses across all programs in both outpatient and inpatient settings. Our experts work with patients, families, and teams to support symptom management, goals of care discussions, future planning and care between home, hospital and community.
Our Services
Bryan and Bette Rowntree Palliative Care Clinical Centre
Located at our Centenary Hospital, SHN’s Bryan and Bette Rowntree Palliative Care Clinical Centre provides in-person and virtual appointments to help people who are living at home to manage their symptoms and clarify their future wishes.
We offer compassionate and coordinated care through:
- Expert pain and symptom management, including assessment, consultation and treatment, and ongoing follow-up care as needed for fatigue, depression, nausea, shortness of breath, pain, etc.
- Guidance on how to talk about what you would like for your future health and personal care
- Supportive care, counselling and multi-faith services to aid you and your family to cope with grief, anxiety and stress
- Connections to community supports
- Assistance with admission to a palliative care unit or hospice when appropriate
Contact us
SHN Bryan and Bette Rowntree Palliative Care Clinical Centre
Centenary Hospital
Margaret Birch Wing, 1st Floor
Phone: 416-284-8131 ext. 5035
Fax: 647-598-4003
Email: palliative@shn.ca
If you would like to access our services, including scheduling an appointment at our Outpatient Palliative Care Clinic or being seen at home, please have your primary care provider send us a referral.
SHN has a highly specialized inpatient palliative care unit located at our General Hospital. This unit is staffed and supported by our specialist interprofessional palliative care team. The inpatient palliative care unit provides services to individuals who:
- Live in Scarborough or have previously received care at SHN
- Need specialized symptom management or acute supportive care for an underlying illness
- Agree with the philosophy of a palliative approach to care
- Want support in their final days of life – coming from one of our inpatient units or directly admitted from home
Contact us
Palliative Care Unit
General Hospital
Tower 6
If you need to contact a patient or family member on the unit, please call 416-438-2911 ext. 83615.
If you have any questions, or want to self-refer, please call the SHN Bryan and Bette Rowntree Palliative Care Clinical Centre at 416-284-8131 ext. 5035 to speak with one of our Palliative Care Coordinators.
The Palliative Care Interprofessional Team is available at every SHN hospital to support patients staying in the hospital. They work work closely with palliative physicians and the healthcare team on units where there are patients whose goals have been identified as palliative to help develop the palliative care plan, provide compassionate pain and symptom management, and help with discharge planning for palliative services.
Coming soon!
SHN Rowntree Palliative Care Rapid Response Team
We are excited to be developing a new Rapid Response Team that will offer 24/7 support when patients go home from the hospital, until community services are in place.
Accessing Care and Resources
Contact us
Bryan and Bette Rowntree Palliative Care Clinical Centre
Centenary Hospital
Margaret Birch Wing, 1st Floor
Phone: 416-284-8131 ext. 5035
Fax: 647-598-4003
Email: palliative@shn.ca
Palliative Care Inpatient Unit
General Hospital
Tower 6
Phone (to call a patient): 416-438-2911 ext. 83615
For questions or self-referral: Please call the SHN Bryan and Bette Rowntree Palliative Care Clinical Centre at 416-284-8131 ext. 5035 to speak with one of our Palliative Care Coordinators.