Spring update



Our Committee members have got their thinking hats on!

We are all thinking about the direction we want the Hospice to move in over the next 3 years.

To start the process we went to see another Hospice in January, and had a splendid and thought provoking day. The Eden Valley Hospice at Home based in Carlisle and Penrith is much bigger than us, about 3 times the size.  It is split between clinical services and  fundraising, it  has to  raise  a  huge  amount  each  week, and  it  gave us ideas about  fundraising,  the use of volunteers, accounting, organisation, patrons and many  other  things. It  was  great to  receive  a  warm welcome  and share  ideas, and we  intend to  keep  in  touch, and maybe even do  a  joint event.
The  next  stage  in our  thinking process  was an ‘away  day’ at  Minsteracres,  where we  enjoyed the tranquil  surroundings  which  enabled  us to  think  about  what  we  want. We were fortunate that we had a facilitator, Steve Wheaton who joined us for the morning.

We are now  clarifying  our  thoughts  about what  we  are  wanting to  achieve  and  new directions. Should  we  for  example,  expand the  areas  where volunteers  work, for example, should we  set  up  a  bereavement  service, should  we  have  community support groups  in  our  towns and  villages  and how can  we  establish  them,  how  can we  improve  our community relations  and our  ‘image’ or ‘visibility’, should we  investigate a facility  in  the hospital, should  we  change the use  of our accommodation, should  we have more  shop  space, and  how  can  we  work  on  our  relationship  with  the  Trust.  Should  we  include  a  children’s  service,  how  can  we  secure  more  stable  funding,  and how  should  we  arrange  our  sub committees  and  do  we  need to  have  more  people  on  them?  We  have  started the  process,  and are very open to suggestions, so  do  let  us know  if you  have  views.


Perhaps the biggest change we have decided on so far is to change our name. We are changing to TYNEDALE HOSPICE AT HOME. We feel this  reflects  what  we  do, it is  simpler,  and it aligns us  with the  Hospice  at  Home  movement.

One  reason  we  had to  take  a  firm  decision on that  is that  we  are very  fortunate  indeed to have  secured the  services of the Media Trust to make  a DVD  about us. Fenwick Kirton- Darling  has  worked  tirelessly  on  arranging this,  and we are  all  very  grateful  for his  hard  work  and  enthusiasm.   This  is an  exciting  project,  and  we  hope that  the final DVD will  be  a  professional  film which  explains  what  we do from  a number  of different  perspectives. The  producer  is  coming to  Hexham  at the beginning  of  March, so  watch  this  space!
The  Hospice provides  services  for  those  with  life  limiting illnesses,  and these  criteria are  known by District  nurses  and GPs.  The exact criteria are below.

Referral Criteria - Patients, over 16, diagnosed with an advanced incurable disease and an estimated prognosis of up to 2 years, or patients requiring intensive home support during a period of treatment.  We will also offer support to the carer as detailed above, as without this support it would be impossible for many patients to stay at home. Respite care is very important to a carer and represents an essential coping mechanism, by creating time ‘just for them’.
We offer access to all services detailed below:
Day, evening and overnight nursing care for patient
Day, evening and overnight respite support for carer
Volunteer support in the home

Any health professional can make a referral but liaison with the Primary Health Care Team is mandatory.
Our Hospice Nurses or Support Workers can also go into Residential Care Homes in the area to provide support to a resident at the end of life.

We have Hexham Abbey booked for Saturday 16th May for our Annual Service and consideration is being given to the form of that service at the moment. We are also reviewing the Light up a Life event in December, following feedback from a survey which Christine undertook. Again ideas and feedback is always welcome.

Although we are thinking hard, we have to keep our feet on the ground too. The demand for services has been high over the months since Christmas, and we have had to advertise for more support workers for our nurse bank. Its  great  to  dream of  how  things  could be,  but  we  must  also  keep  our feet  on  the ground  and not lose sight  of our  purpose, to support people who wish to stay at home with a life - limiting  illness.

Jane Hastings 
Chair of the management committee