The commitment and compassion of our staff throughout the Covid-19 crisis has never been more vital.
Never in the Hospice’s 40-year history have our team shown such selfless dedication to their jobs, ensuring we continue to deliver the highest level of end-of-life care to those who have needed our help and support, even when faced with risks to their own safety, and the health of their families.
Among the many examples of our staff going above and beyond, is In-Patient Unit nursing assistant Kelly Little, who spent almost eight weeks living apart from her young daughter, Katie, during the first national lockdown last Spring so she could continue caring for vulnerable patients. Mother and daughter were finally reunited on Katie’s 11th birthday in May.
“I didn’t cuddle or kiss my daughter for all that time, and that was so difficult for both of us,” Kelly said. “But no-one knew anything about the virus at that time, and I didn’t want to put myself or my daughter in danger. I felt it was best while I was working on the frontline. I wanted to play my part but that was a sacrifice that was desperately hard to make.”
Of the many changes to the way our clinical team has had to work over the past 12 months, Kelly said one of the hardest has been the change to our visitor policy on the In-Patient Unit. Currently, only one designated visitor per patient is allowed to visit in any 24-hour period.
“My role extends to support for friends and family and the visitor restrictions made that really difficult,” she said. “Throw in masks, visors and gowns and it makes it even harder and so much more impersonal.
“It’s not what we are about, especially in a hospice environment. That emotional and psychological care is what sets us apart – it’s the very essence of hospice care – but there were times when we were under so much pressure we were in danger of losing that.
“I can’t wait for the day when families are able to visit freely again like they did before, and what I’m really hoping for is a return to that feeling of togetherness.”
Kelly added: “Huge sacrifices have been made during this pandemic and families have had to place a great deal of trust in us to look after the people they love when they’ve not been able to be there themselves to hold their hand.
“I hope that the families who we never got the opportunity to get to know as well as we would have liked can take some comfort in knowing that every patient was loved and cared for even if they were only with us for a short time.”
