28/05/2026
FROM THE CHAIR
MAY 2026
If you hear or see the word Hospice what’s the first thing that comes to mind?
For many, the word can bring up a lot of fear because of a belief that Hospice just means end-of-life, death, dying and no hope. We find it’s often the reason we are not contacted until the person is at death’s door and people have nowhere else to turn.
Yet nothing could be further from the truth.
In an ideal world we would all live long, productive, healthy (and hopefully happy) lives and die peacefully in our sleep. Sadly, that isn’t the case.
The word hospice derives from the Latin hospes which meant both guest and host. Hospitium, a noun, means hospitality, shelter or a place of rest and it was in the Middle Ages that hospices began to be associated with religious orders and monasteries who would offer shelter, nursing care and spiritual support to those on pilgrimages or who were ill.
However it was Dame Cicely Saunders who founded the modern hospices that we know today. As a nurse, social worker and physician working with the dying, she saw how they needed much more than just physical care at the end of life. Pain control, emotional support, dignity, family care, and spiritual care were equally important and as a result she founded the first modern hospice, St Christopher’s, in London in 1967.
Today hospices across the world offer pain and symptom management; emotional and spiritual care; support for families; home based care where possible and bereavement support after death. Through palliative care, Hospice strives to improve the quality of life by easing pain, symptoms, stress and fear.
Illness is often a lonely journey. Those around us don’t know what to say or do.
Awkwardness means they can end up avoiding the person who is ill altogether.
It is often left to families to care for their loved one at home, a massive undertaking when they themselves are juggling work and families and then having to look after the ill person. They have to deal with the myriad emotions someone who has a terminal or life-threatening illness goes through as well as cope with their own feelings.
Patience and resources are stretched to the limit. Or the person doesn’t have any family to turn to. This is where the involvement of Hospice can be so important. Because it’s a relief to know someone is there, someone is listening, someone cares. The reassuring voice at the other end of the phone, the warm hug when overwhelm hits, the comforting words, the practical support and advice offered by the Hospice team can make a world of difference when it all gets too much.
When we do lose a patient, the whole team feels it. They have often become deeply connected to the patient and their family, sometimes for a few years, and the loss is personal.
The Board and Hospice team never stop looking for ways to streamline and improve operations and expand our services to the community. As I move into my second year as Chair my theme of Structured Expansion remains. Even with our current vacancies on the Board, notwithstanding our lack of a fundraiser or fundraising committee or the fact that it’s a constant financial juggling act in these tough economic times, we are strong, we are committed and I know we will go from strength to strength carried by the passion of this small, dynamic team that goes above and beyond to ensure our patients get the care they need.
A phrase that Dame Cicely Saunders was closely associated with is “You matter because you are you, and you matter to the end of your life.” This has become the heartbeat of hospice care. It’s not about curing, and it’s not about giving up.
It’s about caring fully, honestly, and humanely for as long as possible.
It’s about the connection, the reassurance, the care and the love that we can offer in the most challenging of times.
We are able to be there for them because YOU are here for us. Whether it’s through donations, supporting our fundraisers or our Hospice Shoppe, becoming a Hospice Hero or volunteering your time and expertise, it all makes a difference.
And that difference is a light in the darkness, a moment of quiet comfort for another human being. Because you care, we can care for them. You matter.
Thank you.
DI ATHERTON
CHAIRLADY
