St Barnabas is hoping to hear feedback from the 140,000 residents across the East Lindsey district in order to shape the way it provides care in the area.
As part of the campaign, the hospice hopes to build on its existing services for people with non-cancer diagnoses and people living with dementia.
St Barnabas has offered day services at Louth & District Hospice for more than two years and intends to turn this base into a community hub where local groups are able to meet.
It is also looking to explore the local population’s views on a ‘Hospice in a care home’ service – East Lindsey has one of the highest proportions of people living in care homes in the UK.
Chris Wheway, chief executive at St Barnabas, explained: “This initiative heralds the start of an exciting new era for East Lindsey,” he said.
“We want its community to join us at the very beginning of our journey to invest, improve and innovate in an unprecedented way.
“Drawing upon the skills of our staff – including our specialist team of doctors, nurses and other health professionals – as well as our army of volunteers, we are determined to break new ground in the way we provide services. This will enable us to stay at the forefront of best clinical practice in meeting the wishes of our patients and their families, amid an ever-increasing need.
“With its fast-growing and ageing population, this is particularly the case in East Lindsey. Here, we are rising to this immense challenge by developing an ambitious plan designed to accelerate the improvements that local people tell us they wish to see.”
The hospice will be staging events to engage with local people from early 2016. It also hopes to work with a number of partners, such as East Lindsey District Council, the NHS, and charities such as Marie Curie and Dementia Action Alliance.
The leader of East Lindsey District Council, Councillor Craig Leyland, was pleased that the campaign would bring together all the key providers of health and social care.
“I am delighted that the community will be at the forefront of this forward thinking, adding a unique and very personalised dimension to the way we develop our plans,” he said. “All the partners involved share a strong track record for innovation and joint working, creating the ideal platform on which to progress this new work.”
St Barnabas’ chairman, Robert Neilans, added: “This is all about hearing and capturing the community’s views first-hand, so we understand better what it is that would make a real and positive difference to people’s lives. It is not about what we think they may want or need.
“It will ensure that all the initiatives we adopt complement each other, and make every pound of support we receive go as far as possible by not duplicating or wasting these precious resources.”
More information about the services provided by St Barnabas is available on the hospice website.
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