St Michael’s Hospice was the subject of a talk given by Jane Cave, its Head of Voluntary Services, to Patient Participation Group (PPG) members of Rye Medical Centre and the Ferry Road Health Centre at their meeting on Wednesday June 10. Some interesting new light was thrown on the work of the hospice, which extends far beyond the provision of palliative care for terminally ill and end-of- life patients, though this is the primary function. Access is by clinical referral from the GP or hospital. “It is available at the point when a person or their carer can no longer cope – it is not a respite service that can be booked, say, six weeks ahead”, said Cave.
“The hospice is larger than many, with 28 beds”, she continued. Having been a former convent, it is set in lovely grounds and the food is excellent, more like a hotel according to many of its visitors. The standard of nursing is second to none, with an emphasis on caring for the whole person, meeting physical, emotional and spiritual needs. Although the average length of stay is seven to nine days, listeners were surprised to hear that 40-45 per cent of patients were discharged, with outreach care being provided in their own homes. The hospice has a team of some 900 volunteers, providing a whole range of services, from home care and visiting to car-ferrying and gardening, or even putting the bins out, or walking the dog.”
New ideas are continually being tested out and the best put into practice. A new ‘Well-Being Suite’ is opening this July, thanks to some recent generous funding. This will feature a mini-gym with physiotherapists on hand for help and advice. There is a ‘drop-in day’ on Fridays so that family members can meet and have informal conversations with staff. Consultation, asking patients what they would like to do, has resulted in art therapy, embroidery and mosaic-making classes, for example. On VE Day, the day centre became a setting for a street party. “Nurses spend a lot of time with patients”, said Cave, “talking through their concerns, alleviating fears and distress. It has been shown that if fear is alleviated, then drugs will take better effect”.
St Michael’s Hospice is an independent charity, with its own board of trustees. Its budget is of the order of £4.5 million per annum, so it is a substantial business undertaking. Grants cover a third of expenditure, but its charity shops and fund-raising events bring in £600,000 each year. Legacies are a vital means of funding the balance, said Cave. Finally, she quoted the words of Dame Cicely Saunders, widely recognised as the founder of the hospice movement in the UK: “We cannot add days to life, but we can add life to days”.
Photo : Kenneth Bird