The way our staff here at Isabel Hospice have faced the many challenges thrust upon us by the Covid-19 pandemic has been truly inspiring.
Over the past 12 months, they have shouldered incredible strain, adopting new ways of working and pulling together to ensure everyone we see receives the expert, compassionate care they deserve.
Our therapy assistant Jenny Bounsall was one of several members of staff who volunteered to be seconded to our In-Patient Unit to help relieve some of the pressure being faced by our nursing team during the height of the coronavirus crisis.
The experience has had a profound impact, with Jenny saying not only does she now have a deeper respect for her IPU colleagues, but it has given her greater insight into how our teams can work together to support people at every stage of their illness.
As our therapy assistant, Jenny usually works alongside our Clinical Nurse Specialists, physios, occupational and complementary therapists within our Living Well with Isabel service to support those with established, long term conditions, such as respiratory and heart diseases, Parkinson’s, Motor Neurone Disease and dementia, as well as cancer.
However, working on the In-Patient Unit, Jenny suddenly found herself supporting patients much further along their journey, who were now facing their final days, or hours, of life.
“I’d never been in that environment where I’d seen so many people who were so poorly,” she said. “To see death and dying so close up did really hit me, emotionally it was very hard at times, but also it was a great privilege.”
Initially, Jenny took on the role usually carried out by our IPU volunteers, but who were no longer able to assist our clinical team because of the pandemic. Her duties included serving meals, making cups of tea and refreshments, clearing trays and just sitting with them.
Jenny said: “The feeling in the whole therapy team was that we wanted to help as much as possible and when we realised the hospitality side of the unit needed some support quite a few of us were very happy to take turns to fill that gap left by the volunteers.
“It really just showed how much our volunteers contribute and how valuable that is to the Hospice in being able to free up the clinical staff and nurses so they can focus on their jobs.”
As the weeks went by, Jenny realised she would like to offer some more practical, hands-on support to the patients, so she took on the role of nursing support assistant (NSA). Her main responsibilities included helping with personal care, moving and positioning patients so they were comfortable, carrying out clinical observations and looking after their emotional needs.
She said: “All our patients had different needs, so it was a massive learning curve but fascinating to see how all the different members of the team work together to ensure every patient receives the very best care.
“Everyone is shown so much compassion and there is such understanding of the patients’ needs; it really is beautiful to see.”
Jenny said she feels proud to have played her part during such an unprecedented time. “It was difficult because everything was so new for everyone. We were worried because of the personal risk, but at the same time you don’t care because you want to help out. We were all just doing our best in an extreme situation.
“When I look back, even though it was very hard, what the patients and their families went through was even harder. It’s an experience I will never forget, and there are some patients, and their families, who will really stick with me. I’m proud to know I provided some support to them in those very dark times.”
