St. Luke’s Hospice shows public just what it takes to provide end of life care

St. Luke’s Hospice is one of more than 200 charitable hospices across the UK taking part in Hospice Care Week (7-13 October), led by the national hospice and end of life care charity Hospice UK.

This year the theme ‘This is What It Takes’ will be highlighting that while hospice care is provided free for people with life-limiting conditions and their families, it takes a lot of skills, people and resources.

Hospice care is about much more than medical care as hospices such as St. Luke’s Hospice provide a wide range of services including well-being therapies including, massage and reflexology, bereavement counselling and support groups. 

At St. Luke’s Hospice, care and support is provided at the main Hospice as well as out in the community. Services such as OneResponse, a 24/7 urgent support, assessment and advice service, is helping get care to patients, their families and carers and/or healthcare professionals quickly when they need it, day or night.

The huge range of services provided by Hospices relies on the contribution of many people including nurses, doctors, cleaners, cooks, therapists, shop staff, gardeners, as well as countless dedicated volunteers.

Hospices receive some funding from the NHS but they rely heavily on the generous support of their local communities, including from funders, donors and supporters. St. Luke’s Hospice needs to raise £5.5 million this year to ensure its services continue.

There’s a range of ways to get involved this Hospice Care Week;

• Donate: Make a donation this week to help support the Hospice and in return, you’ll receive a special St. Luke’s Hospice pin badge to wear proudly this Hopsice Care Week and beyond. To donate and for more information, visit www.stlukeshospice.com/hcw 
• Volunteer: Find out about volunteering with the Hospice. From volunteer drivers to gardeners, volunteers are the backbone of St. Luke’s Hospice enabling the charity to provide the range of services and support it does
• Fundraise: Take part in a fundraising event to help raise vital funds.

Sharon Quinn, Director of Care and Quality at St. Luke’s Hospice, said:

“The support provided by hospices is far-reaching and goes beyond end-of-life care; we’re here for families as well as patients affected with a life-limiting illness from diagnosis onwards, offering a range of services both at the Hospice and out in the community.

“Hospice Care Week is an opportunity for us to show you what it takes to give people and their families and carers the support they deserve. We’ll be sharing stories throughout the week and would encourage everyone to find out more about the Hospice and show your support for your local hospice, whether that’s by volunteering or by making a donation towards our caring work.”

Tracey Bleakley, Chief Executive of national hospice and end of life care charity Hospice UK, said:

“Hospices provide incredible care and improve the lives of so many people with life-limiting conditions and their loved ones. During Hospice Care Week, we’d like to give a big shout out to everyone involved in making this happen for over 200,000 families every single year and show just what it takes. 

“We want to give people a ‘behind the scenes’ glimpse of the sheer diversity of people and resources that goes into the compassionate care provided to people at the end of their lives and why hospices are truly at the heart of their communities.

“We hope that in Hospice Care Week people will be inspired to support their local hospice in different ways; whether by donating, volunteering or helping to spread the word about hospice care on social media.

“This year is proving to be really tough for the hospice sector on several fronts, whether related to fundraising or recruitment challenges, so it has never been more important for people to support their local hospice.”

Each year hospices care for than 200,000 people with terminal and life-limiting conditions and also provide bereavement support for more than 40,000 families.

For more information on the campaign and to find out about the ways you can get involved, visit: www.stlukeshospice.com