Wicklow Hospice is set to welcome its first patients
WICKLOW Hospice will officially open on October 30, with patients arriving at the start of November.
The new facility in Magheramore provides specialist palliative care services for the county through its 15 in-patient public beds and its Community Palliative Care team who will care for patients, and their families, across the county, apart from west Wicklow which comes under St. Brigid’s Hospice in Kildare.
The 3.5 acre site was donated by the Columban Sisters and Our Lady’s Hospice and Care Services (OLH&CS) will run the hospice. The official launch of the hospice took place in January of this year and it was expected to welcome patients in April. However, the Covid-19 pandemic delayed the final works, fit-out and delivery of specialised equipment.
Chief Executive Officer of OLH&CS, Audrey Houlihan, praised the efforts of Wicklow Hospice Foundation and the greater Wicklow community for their combined fundraising efforts over the past ten years.
She said: ‘We are truly delighted to be opening in Wicklow this month. This is a major achievement by the people of Wicklow and we are honoured to bring more than 140 years’ experience delivering palliative care to the county. At a turbulent time for so many communities around the world, we are confident that Wicklow Hospice will transform quality of life for patients and families and meet the changing care needs of current and future generations.
‘ The final preparations are underway and our new Community Palliative Care Team moves in on Friday, October 30. While their day-today work in visiting patients in their homes continues as normal, they now have the added benefit of being able to recommend coming in as an in-patient to let the team work with them to manage their symptoms during a short stay or for end-of-life care.
‘ The in-patient unit will welcome its first patients during the week of November 9 and will grow to meet needs and referrals from hospitals and across Wicklow. By the time we are fully up and running by year-end, we will have just over 40 staff across a wide range of clinical and non-clinical roles. We are proud to work in this beautiful new facility and look forward to growing our team here.’
There are also plans to expand the current community service so that patients can be visited in their homes seven days a week in 2021, rather than the current five days a well. It is also hoped to provide a respite service for those in care, depending on the healthcare environment.
Support is also needed to cover the €2.75 million bank local required to finish the building work, at a time when fundraising efforts are greatly hampered by the pandemic.
Ms Houlihan said: ‘We rely heavily on the support of the public and our fundraising has been critically impacted by Covid-19. We receive a lot of support from communities at events big and small but this year people have been unable to get together and we are really seeing the impact of this now.
‘We estimate that fundraising this year will be down over 35 per cent by year-end and we urge the people of Wicklow to get behind this project once more. In the future, as with our other locations, fundraising will pay for enhancements that are so greatly valued by patients and their families. This includes specialist equipment, complementary therapies and supporting the wonderful volunteer gardening programme.’
As with other healthcare providers nationwide, Wicklow Hospice will be in the unfortunate position of having to restrict visiting at present.
Ms Houlihan explained: ‘Visiting will be aligned to the phases of the government roadmap and details of agreed visiting and other relevant arrangements will be confirmed by the clinical team. We are grateful for the support and understanding of patients and their families as we strive to protect them, our staff and the wider community.
Virtual visits have become popular and we are happy to work with patients and their families to help them set up phone and video calling. We encourage patients to bring in items from home and we know that messages, photos, cards and pictures from children really brighten up their day.
‘Volunteers play a vital role across our services. Our gardening volunteers have been active for some time, planning how to make the most of this special site. In the new year we will look to develop our volunteer programme and advise those who are interested in getting involved to keep an on social media and online.’