Cornwall LivingAutumn 2019
Bring on the beds
With public support, Cornwall Hospice Care is able to open more beds for patients.
Despite challenging economic times Cornwall Hospice Care leaders have committed to opening more beds at both hospices. Four more have already opened meaning there are now nine at the charity’s Mount Edgcumbe Hospice in St Austell and nine at St Julia’s Hospice in Hayle, with more planned to open later this year.
The Director of Clinical Services, Gina Starnes, tells us:
“In my 30 year nursing career I’ve seen first hand the difference that hospices make, giving patients and their families the peace, dignity and specialised care they need. As the only adult hospice charity in Cornwall we know there are many more families who would benefit from our care so we’ve been investing in our staff and facilities so we can open more beds.”
However, such plans come at a cost and at a time when the Cornish charity has felt the challenges of the current economic climate. David Renwick, the Chair of Cornwall Hospice Care, explains: “We can only open more beds with the support of the public. I’m appealing to everyone in Cornwall to help us so we can support more people with terminal illnesses.”
The charity has launched an appeal to help fund the increased nursing costs to support the extra beds as Oli Hoare, Head of Fundraising, explains: “As a 24/7 charity our nurses are key to the care we deliver. To help us continue their vital work we’re asking people for £20 to fund an hour of that care and we hope they will help us achieve our desire to have 20 beds open by the end of the year.”
As the charity prepares to mark the 40th anniversary in 2020 of providing adult hospice care to the people of Cornwall, it recently launched its latest Impact Report, detailing what the charity has achieved in the last year and what its plans are for the financial year ahead. Chief Executive, Paul Brinsley tells us: “We’re always appreciative of the support people give us, but now we need an extra boost to meet the demands. I welcome the news from the government about more funding being available for hospices. We’re working hard to ensure that Cornwall benefits from this so we can hopefully increase the NHS contribution towards our care from our current 19.1%, closer to the 32% average for England.”
CORNWALL HOSPICE CARE
01726 839156
"I’ve seen first hand the difference that hospices make, giving patients and their families the peace, dignity and specialised care they need..."
