It's the service you don't need until you do and for many families organising palliative care for loved ones is incredibly hard.
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Fortunately, the Southern Highlands Community Hospice (SHCH) is there to offer palliative care services at home and guide families through it.
For the SHCH, community-wide palliative care can come in many forms. Currently, the SHCH is supporting residents in not-for-profit aged care facilities
They are also providing funding for palliative care equipment. SHCH is committed to supporting locals in their time of need.
While the dream of a brick and mortar purpose-built hospice still lingers, a change in the SHCH constitution has allowed the charity to focus on the funding of palliative care to patients through palliative care service providers.
SHCH Director, Peter Morris, said the SHCH had encountered great difficulty in achieving the initial goal of a hospice.
"Under the original SHCH Constitution, funds raised could only be expended on the construction, management and running of a purpose-built Hospice", he said.
"With costs far exceeding funds raised from community donations and funds generated by the four Hospice shops in Mittagong and Bowral, plans had to be re-evaluated.
"A change to the constitution approved by the membership lead to a new strategy to fund palliative care throughout the Southern Highlands. In the future, however, the feasibility of building a hospice will be re-evaluated.
"Additionally, with an increase in people choosing to die at home, our charity will be able to provide funds for specialist nursing care and the supply of essential medical equipment to assist in the palliative care process."
"We feel that the above provides the opportunity to make a really positive contribution to the community at a very difficult time of life."
- SHCH Director, Peter Morris
Mr Morris said the net revenue generated through generous community donations received to stock the flagship TIMELESS store, was fed back into the local community.
Retail Group Manager of SHCH, Sarah Bevis, said they did this by working with various palliative care service providers that require additional funding to support their patients.
"We are working with Harbison Care where we assist with providing specialised palliative care nursing for residents who are referred to us by Harbison," she said.
"We also help through pharmaceutical rebates and pay for palliative care medication, equipment and dressings. Overall there is a limit of $5000 per person, per year."
Mr Morris explained that SHCH had entered into memorandums of understanding with Harbison CARE, Southern Highlands Private Hospital and CanAssist.
"We're not supporting Harbison Care, Southern Highlands Private Hospital or CanAssist as such, we are supporting patients. Our focus is on patient funding through those palliative care service providers," he said.
"So if someone needs a palliative care bed in the private hospital but can't afford to do that, we will help fund them. If a palliative care bed is not available at Bowral and District Hospital when needed and the patient is admitted to the private hospital, we will assist with funding.
"We've agreed on a day rate with the Southern Highlands Private hospital for palliative end of life care and their hospital accommodation.
"With CanAssist, we provide additional funding after the CanAssist funding limit has been reached".
"We feel that the above provides the opportunity to make a really positive contribution to the community at a very difficult time of life."
To further ensure greater funds are available for palliative care patient support, four of the SHCH retail outlets in Mittagong and Bowral were consolidated into one retail store, TIMELESS, in Bowral.
SHCH has now only one full-time employee within the entire organisation.
This expansive new shop on Bong Bong Street showcases pre-loved fashion, one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture, and unique bric-a-brac. Staffed and run largely by a team of volunteers, all proceeds from the store after expenses go directly back into the community.
Ms Bevis said that none of it was possible without the generous and ongoing support of volunteers and the generous donations from the Southern Highlands community.
Now in 2022, the SHCH commitment to expand patient support to palliative care service providers has recently led to an agreement with Palliative Aged Care Consultancy Services (PACCS) to provide specialist palliative care nursing and training to further extend palliative care services throughout the Southern Highlands.
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Vera Demertzis
Journalist at the Southern Highland News covering council yarns and community news. Got a tip or a story to tell? Email vera.demertzis@southernhighlandnews.com.au or call on 0427 250 908.
Journalist at the Southern Highland News covering council yarns and community news. Got a tip or a story to tell? Email vera.demertzis@southernhighlandnews.com.au or call on 0427 250 908.
