At the Hospice, we understand that terminal illness can turn lives upside-down; not only the life of the person who is ill but also the lives of all those who care about them.
During Dying Matters Awareness Week, the team at Heart of Kent Hospice, including doctors, nurses, health care assistants, occupational therapists, physiotherapists and volunteers will be encouraging communities to get talking about death and dying including conversations between healthcare professionals and patients, their carers and their families.
Hospice UK, who organise Dying Matters Awareness Week, believe that honest, timely conversations about death and dying are essential to good end of life care to overcome the barriers, including lack of confidence and taboos around discussing death.
At Heart of Kent Hospice, the fabulous team of professionals include health care assistants like Michaela who has been providing care at the Aylesford Hospice for six years. Here Michaela and the ward team who work on the Inpatient Unit share some of their stories:
“As soon as a patient arrives, we ask them to fill in a ‘hello form’ which allows us to find out what’s most important to each patient so that we can provide that extra care which takes into account some of the special things each patient loves to do. This may include playing favourite songs or helping patients to celebrate special days or anniversary dates.
“On the ward we often play a patient’s favourite music and sometimes even sing and dance to help make patients happy and relaxed. The Gin trolly is a favourite and we offer patients Mocktails or Cocktails! If a patient enjoys classical music the nurses will sometimes organise for a string quartet to come and play inside the inpatient unit.
“When a patient, who was a grandmother, was unable to go with their family for a holiday to Disneyland, the nurses printed off and wore masks of the Disney princesses and played music so that she and her little granddaughter were able to relive the fairytale together.
“During Covid we had to use our imaginations more and still use the props from our cupboard to create special moments. We can encourage handprints of grandchildren which can be given to grandparents on our wards with a ribbon.
“There are presently two bird watchers on our ward and they are currently having a competition to see how many birds they can photograph on their smart phones!
“A special bathroom has been installed on the Inpatient Ward from money raised through fundraising. The lights in the Jacuzzi bath can change to someone’s favourite colour and music can be played and there is always room for a champagne glass!
“The ward has regular parties and we decorate rooms for special anniversaries and birthdays. Patients are also able to enjoy Chinese takeaways, cinema rooms for movie nights and there is a cuddle bed for all the family to enjoy.
“We had an ice cream man visit and when he himself needed hospice care with us, his friends took over when he died and they now provide free ice creams to patients at the Hospice.
“For a special wedding anniversary, a patient was moved from their room for cleaning which was a ruse for getting the room ready for a wedding anniversary with banners and flower petals.
“Special days like Mother’s Day, Easter and Christmas will include a little Baileys and squirty cream!”
The ward team aim to give families a better bereavement experience by creating laughter and making a difference to make dying better for patients and their families.
Lyndsey Stukalov-Stone, Family Support Team Manager said:
“Our charity provides many services for those in the Maidstone community including hosting a free monthly drop-in for all children and families under their care and those living with a life limiting illness in Kent. The sessions focus on fun activities for children and young people such as crafts and games, with snacks and drinks provided.
“These sessions are all about everyone making special memories and having fun together in a comfortable and safe environment. The groups also encourage and support families (including children) by helping them to have honest conversations about what they will be facing together in the future.”
The sessions take place once a month on a Saturday at Heart of Kent Hospice, Preston Hall, Aylesford, Kent, ME20 7PU.
There is no need to book, but if you have any questions, please contact the Family Support Team at fst@hokh.co.uk or call 01622 792200.
To find out more about Heart of Kent Hospice visit www.hokh.org
————————
Heart of Kent Hospice has been providing free, compassionate, end-of-life care to people living with a terminal illness and their loved ones in Maidstone, Aylesford, Tonbridge and Malling and the surrounding towns and villages for the past 33 years.
The Hospice has built an excellent reputation within the local community for the quality of its care, which has been further endorsed by the Care Quality Commission who awarded us with an overall rating of ‘Outstanding’ following an inspection in February 2017.
Our vision is for everyone living with a terminal illness in our community to achieve the best quality of life. We are committed to achieving this by enabling them to live in comfort, with independence and dignity to the end of their lives, and to support those closest to them.
Last year the Hospice cared for over 1,800 patients and their families in their own homes or at our Aylesford-based Hospice. Our charity needs to raise £6 million to deliver all the Hospices services, and we depend heavily on our loyal community of supporters, whose generous donations and fundraising activities raise money for us every year.
For regular news and updates relating to the Hospice, please follow us on social media:
Leave a Reply