Exploding the myths about hospice care BCL270

Exploding the myths about hospice care

Hospice and Wellbeing Care

How Hospice and Wellbeing Care is delivered on an in-patient basis and within the community and what relevance this has for a business, their employees and customers.

• Hospice care across the U.K is provided by Charities and largely funded by Charitable giving. There is a reliance upon Volunteers giving up their time for free and on Trustees providing specialist skills to guide the organisation and its Management Team
• Access to Hospice and Wellbeing services is inconsistent and demand usually exceeds supply, which means that not everyone is able to choose where they die
• Where Hospice services are provided, they can reduce pressure on acute hospitals – patients can be referred for Hospice care that would otherwise end up accessing NHS services via A&E.
• Patients (and families) can benefit from these services over a number of years as it is not just about “end of Life” care
• What these services cost and how they are funded (less than 25% of funding comes from the public purse)
• The financial pressures that every Hospice provider is currently facing – costs of operation / regulation are rising, public funding is reducing (in real terms) and fundraising “fatigue”
• The need for a joined up solution if Hospices are to remain financially viable and if hospice and wellbeing care is to become a relevant part of the local healthcare economy
• The requirement for something positive to emerge from charitable giving (the introduction of new services and / or equipment) rather than just “keeping the doors open”
•  Many companies now recognise that they have a corporate social responsibility (CSR) to local charities – and those that actively support the Hospice comment on the positive impact that this support has had on their own workforce and on morale generally

Who is Marian Imrie, Chief Executive – Woking and Sam Beare Hospice and Wellbeing Care

Marian has spent most of her professional working life in the independent healthcare sector. An accountant by training, her experience ranges from running large acute hospitals to developing new services and facilities at a corporate level.

She set up her own healthcare consultancy company in 2013 and first became aware of the work of the Hospice when she was contracted to do some work with an independent healthcare provider in Woking.

Marian was invited to become a Trustee of Woking & Sam Beare Hospices (the equivalent of a Non-Executive Director in the world of commerce) at the end of 2018 and was appointed as CEO in May 2019. This was her first foray into the Hospice sector (and into the world of the small charity) and she would be the first to acknowledge how different it is to the commercial world which she had inhabited for so many years – and one where she can see the very real impact of her efforts on the lives of those living with long term or life-limiting conditions.

Marian provides her time completely free of charge because she is passionate about the service that the Hospice provides and believes that every member of her team would do the same if they could afford to do so. She comments that she is “blown away” every time she walks around the Hospice and hears about the life stories of those that her team care for. She is only too aware that disease is no respecter of class, gender, creed or lifestyle – and that she herself was very fortunate to survive her own cancer diagnosis in her 30’s.

On this edition of Business Connections Live, Marian will explain:

• A better understanding of the role of the Hospice – it’s not all about “End of Life” Care and most of the care that’s provided is within the community – not at the Hospice
• The fact that almost all Hospice care is provided by charities which are not part of the NH
• More than 75% of the cost of providing these services is met from charitable giving and from retail activity (the growing number of charity shops)
• Some Hospices have had to close (and many more are restricting access to services) because of lack of funding
• The current business model is not sustainable – more money from the public purse will need to be found if this service is to continue

Learn the business fundamentals on:

• Recognition that the viewer (an individual or company) can reach out to their local Charity and the positive impact that this could have on them and their own workforce
• Identification of the commercial benefits that such an association can deliver, e.g. raising of profile and brand reputation, subliminal advertising etc.
• Identification of the skills and resources that could add value to a local Charity e.g. Trustee, Volunteer
• Recognition that employees and colleagues may need to access these specialist services at some stage and that some form of association may help to break down barriers

For more great information visit our Guests website or follow them on Social Media.

Website: www.wsbhospices.co.uk
Twitter: @Wokingsambearehospices
Facebook: @WSBHospices
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/wokingandsambeare
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/woking-and-sam-beare-hospices
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wsbhospices/