St Catherine’s Hospice responds to Coronavirus outbreak to protect key services
We wish to assure our community that St Catherine’s is following guidance provided by the Government and NHS England regarding the Coronavirus outbreak. We are taking precautionary action to protect our critical community and inpatient services, and protect the safety of our patients, families, volunteers and employees.
We are adapting the way we work in all areas to ensure that our key care services continue to operate in these uncertain times. This does mean however that some of our support services are affected, along with many of our fundraising revenues including our shops, The Mill café, and events.
People who need our care are vulnerable to viruses like COVID-19 – and particularly those who are inpatients at the hospice – hence the need for a calm yet vigilant response to the ever-changing situation.
We are minimising footfall in the hospice building and asking everyone to adhere to the Government’s advice and the NHS guidance.
Please do not come to the hospice if you or a member of your household have a recent onset of:
• high temperature and/or
• a new continuous cough
The hospice’s ‘cobra’ team is monitoring the situation meticulously, meeting on a daily basis, and updating recommendations and changes to services in line with the guidance.
Please click here for the Government’s most up-to-date information.
Until further notice, to protect the health and wellbeing of our communities, St Catherine’s Hospice has taken the difficult decision to:
• Cancel support drop-in sessions at the hospice
• Close The Mill café
• Close hospice charity shops and the donation centre
• Cease door-to-door lottery collections
• Postpone our summer fundraising events programme
Please read below for more detailed updates.
Inpatient unit – guidance for visitors (updated 27th March)
Community Services – including Clinical Nurse Specialists and medical outpatient clinics
Where appropriate, we will conduct reviews remotely by telephone call.
Our team will make contact with all of our patients in the community to discuss their ongoing care and support. Please be assured we remain totally committed to supporting you and your families and if a face-to-face review is necessary, the relevant risk assessments and procedures will be put in place.
The same advice applies to those who may be attending the hospice for medical outpatient services.
Lymphoedema
There are no changes to our Lymphoedema service at this time, and our team will contact all patients ahead of their appointments to discuss their individual circumstances.
Support services
Regrettably we will not be able to host the monthly Carers’ Drop In, Bereavement Support Group and Remembrance Services until further notice.
In addition, we are unable to provide a home-visiting befriending service but are able to provide a volunteer befriending telephone service. We are also conducting counselling sessions remotely.
Volunteers
We are keeping in regular contact with volunteers regarding their own safety and wellbeing, and the safety of our patients, visitors, and staff. We are asking volunteers with underlying medical conditions and those aged 70 or over to cease volunteering temporarily. This is not something that we would wish for but we believe that it is the right thing to do at this time. We are also concerned to keep in touch with volunteers who may become isolated in the coming months.
The Mill bookings and event sign-ups
We are contacting those who have a booking with The Mill or The Mill Outside, and everyone who has signed up or bought tickets for our fundraising events. We do so with our sincerest apologies and in the hope of your understanding.
We are in this together
This is a very tough period and we wish everyone well in our local communities. We will do all that we can to keep caring for people near the end of life and thank you for your loyalty and unselfish commitment in these difficult days. It means everything to us!
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