Hospice at Home West Cumbria hopes new campaign will show hospices are about ‘living well, not just dying’.

The West Cumbrian Hospice is standing alongside other hospices across the UK in supporting Hospice UK’s latest awareness campaign, #HospiceCareIsMoreThanYouThink.

Julie Monk, CEO of Hospice at Home West Cumbria, said: “We know that many people are surprised when they discover the full range of services hospices provide in wards, in the community and in the place patient’s love most: their own home.

“At Hospice at Home West Cumbria, we want our community to know that hospice care is about enhancing quality of life, supporting families, and being there every step of the way, not just at the very end.

“By supporting this national campaign, we hope more people will feel encouraged to reach out, whether for themselves or a loved one.

“This campaign is a wonderful opportunity to show that hospice care is about living well, not just about dying.”

The campaign aims to challenge common misconceptions about hospice care and highlight the wide range of services and support available to people living with life limiting conditions, as well as their families and carers.

Too often, hospice care is only thought of as care provided in the very last days of life. While this is an important part of the work, Hospice at Home West Cumbria also provides so much more, including clinical care in people’s homes, family and bereavement support, complementary therapies, and lymphoedema support. 

Catherine, a Hospice at Home West Cumbria service user said: Leanne, Mum’s nurse, was amazing.

“She understood Mum and Dad’s humour and each visit lifted Mum’s spirits. The work hospice do means they get to know the patient, the nurses knew all about Mum and Dad’s relationship and how to talk to Mum.

“Leanne referred me into the HHWC family bereavement anticipatory grief support and Lorraine supported my Dad to get the respite he didn’t even realise he needed – they called him every day to chat.

“Through the anticipatory grief meetings I had with Karen she also helped me to support my three young boys, by offering advice and books.

“This helped us talk to the boys about their Gran dying and showed us how to support them through the grieving process.”

Hospice at Home West Cumbria has been providing vital care and support to people across the region for over 35 years.

The charity is the only provider of hospice at home care in West Cumbria and relies heavily on the generosity of local communities to fund its services.

The #HospiceCareIsMoreThanYouThink campaign runs from the October 6-12, and will feature stories from across the UK that shine a light on the holistic, compassionate care hospices provide.

To find out more about Hospice at Home West Cumbria’s services, visit the website here or follow the conversation on social media using #HospiceCareIsMoreThanYouThink.