The Leicester NHS Hospital Trust have a charity arm called Raising Health which provides charitable support for many charities within Leicestershire which provide care in the community. One of the charities under the arm of Raising Health, is Hospice at Home.

Hospice at Home is a charity which supports terminally ill patients in their own community and in their homes so patients do not have to go to hospitals. This is aimed at patients who find it difficult to go to hospitals or do not like receiving care at hospitals; if patient’s do need to attend the hospital e.g. for certain treatment, hospices provide support for the patient and can attend with them.

The charity has many local hospices for patients to receive treatment at, and have nurses based there, who can be called out to patient’s home to treat there instead.

The care that the hospices provide include giving information about conditions, provide equipment needed for some condition e.g. hospital beds/commodes, giving emotional support to the patient and family/carers during treatment and after bereavement, assisting with personal care for the patient, liase with the hospital and GP and providing medication for the patient.

My brother started using this service in January 2017. He was diagnosed with cancer in 2010, which became considerably worse this year. Hospice at home gave Matt regular support and information over the next few months and helped him attend his hospital appointments for his chemotherapy which he hated going to so much. As Matt become more bed bound, the nurses brought round his medication needed for his anxiety and pain relief and came round to help any way they could.

In May 2017, Matt was told he had weeks to live, and Hospice at Home came round immediately to help with information and emotional support for him and the rest of our family.

Over these 7 years, Matt hated hospitals and knew he wanted to die in the comfort of his own home, which would not have been possible without Hospice at Home. They allowed him to pass away pain free, peacefully, in his own bed at home surrounded by his family, allowing for family and friends to say their goodbyes properly before he passed. The fact the Matt passed away at home also allowed us to spend time with him after he passed which is not possible if he was in a hospital.

For us as a family, Hospice at Home were there for support and information after he passed. Sadly Matt did not make a few weeks, he passed the next day, but Hospice at Home made the whole process easier for Matt and us to handle and Matt was surrounded by his family in his last moments, all due to them.

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