Hospice hopes for new centre
WHILE North West Hospice has a large team of specialist staff, volunteers play a pivotal role in the organisation’s success.
Chief Executive, Dr Nigel McCarley, said the hospice is reliant on volunteers who make up 75 per cent of its workforce.
“A lot of people give a lot of their time to the hospice, and a good example would be the renovations of our new offices at Wine Street Car Park,” he said.
“From the word go they were bringing in and out furniture and within five weeks everything was set up.”
He added: “They do major work at fundraising which is essential.
The organisation could simply not provide without volunteers and the generosity of the community. For that, we are very grateful.”
Each year, North West Hospice must generate € 2m.
While they receive € 1m in funding from the government, the rest is collected through fundraising.
It is a tall ask, but Dr McCarley said the hospice has seen a 20 per cent increase in donations since opening their offices on Wine Street.
“The new offices have created a higher profile and has made it easier to connect with the community.”
Despite this greater connection, Dr McCarley admits there is still a misconception about the role of the hospice.
A survey carried out in Sligo found that more than half of adults had little to no knowledge of the Hospice care.
The organisation is currently trying to combat this through school education programmes. They are also launching a new website in the coming months.
But perhaps the biggest project on the horizon for North West Hospice is their attempts at securing sufficient funding for a new, purpose built centre.
“Where we are now is an old maternity ward which isn’t ideal.
“We have agreed to seek planning permission which will take at least a year, and we will move forward from there.”
At North West Hospice, the philosophy is living until you die.
“It’s tough at times, but we have a special service delivered by special people.”