The Palliative Care Handbook New Zealand Edition is now available on its own interactive website and can be installed as an app for convenient access.
Web access & to Download:
Visit https://palliative-care-handbook.nz in your browser where you will find instructions to install the app on your desktop, mobile phone, or tablet home screen.
If you attempt to download the web-app but receive a returned message "this has been locked and is not accessible" please contact your organisation’s IT provider to allow access to the link. The PCH is accessible with a New Zealand or Pacific Island based VPN only. VPNs logged from outside of these regions will result in a “You have been Blocked” message.
Key features:
- Easy keyword search to quickly locate chapters on symptom control, drug information, and the Syringe Driver Compatibility Chart
- Intuitive navigation with fully hyperlinked sections, tables, and references for efficient access
- Quick home-screen installation for convenient use on your phone, tablet, or desktop
This new digital format supports timely, consistent access to guidance wherever palliative care is being delivered.
Please note: Due to copyright and version control protocols, electronic copies of The Palliative Care Handbook must not be uploaded to external websites.
How to order a copy:
You can order up to 20 hardcopies of the Palliative Care Handbook:
For Hospices:
Please log in to your existing Blue Star account:
https://portal.bluestar.co.nz/login/hospicenz
The PCH will appear as a drop-down option for ordering additional copies. If you do not know your login details, please contact: [email protected]
Other Palliative Care Providers:
Please email the following details to [email protected] and Hospice New Zealand will place the order on your behalf.
- Contact name
- Organisation name
- Delivery address
- Quantity required
Distribution and Postage Costs
While the Handbook itself is free, distribution and postage costs apply. An invoice will be sent following dispatch.
Estimated Distribution Costs (Up to 10 Copies)
- Pick and Pack
- $5.50 per order
- Additional $2.50 if ordered together with the Guide for Carers
- Freight rates
- Wellington Region (Local): $12.00 per parcel (max 25kg)
- North Island: $18.00 per parcel (max 10kg)
- South Island: $20.00 per parcel (allow 2 days; max 10kg)
- Rural Delivery: Additional $5.00 per parcel
- Residential Delivery: Additional $1.60 per parcel
Background to the PCH New Zealand First Edition (2024)
The Palliative Care Handbook has long been a trusted companion for health professionals, providing guidance on safe and expected palliative care practice within a non-specialist (generalist) setting.
This revised edition continues that tradition. It is designed for medical, nursing, and allied health practitioners who, alongside their usual scope of practice, assess and make clinical decisions for patients who are deteriorating and require a palliative care approach.
The review was led by Dr Warrick Jones, Medical Director, North Haven Hospice (Lead Editor)
Clare Randall, CE Arohanui Hospice & Palliative Care Pharmacist Prescriber (Lead Editor, Pharmacopeia Section). Additional chapters were reviewed by subject matter experts.
What’s new in the 2024 Edition
- New chapters on caring for the older person
- Expanded guidance on whole-person care, addressing more than medical and clinical needs
- The introduction of wairuatanga (spiritual essence), an approach of particular importance for Māori and meaningful for all people receiving palliative care and their whānau
- Patient and whānau “voices” included in every chapter
- Updated guidance reflecting current best practice in the use of two-drug combinations in New Zealand health settings