1 MERCY HOSPICE AUCKLAND’S LIFETIMES

You’ve given Danie and

his partner Brendan unconditional care

Danie (pictured right) and his partner Brendan (pictured left)

NEWSLETTER FEBRUARY 2018

Inside

A day in the life of a palliative nurse

A small way of giving back to Mercy

Community Palliative Nurse recognised

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Thank you

2 MERCY HOSPICE AUCKLAND’S LIFETIMES

A huge thank you for your generous support towards the ‘Families as Carers’ programme appeal.

You raised $69,416! These funds are already being put to good use, helping us to ensure families of the 300 patients currently under our care have timely access to the programme. Thank you.The Tree of Remembrance is a very special event for Mercy Hospice and all hospices throughout the country, supported by our wonderful friends at Farmers. Thank you to our fabulous volunteers who, in December were collecting donations for Mercy Hospice. The total amount raised through your efforts was $54,220.98.

As the New Year arrives and we all look forward to what 2018 holds for us all, I always take a moment to acknowledge the incredible things we have achieved together over the last year.For so many families, Mercy Hospice has played a very special part in their lives. Throughout the year, so many patients and family members have returned to visit, sharing positive stories and feelings about how our amazing team has cared for them. For me, these moments are the ones that really make a difference. To know we played a compassionate, and respectful part in supporting over 1000 families, doing everything we could to allow so many people to live life to the fullest, is truly satisfying for everyone here.Looking forward, we can’t help but be infl uenced by some of those families we have been honoured to be invited into.This year, our direction and focus is all about raising awareness and ensuring everyone in our community has access to the quality care and support we offer.Our events and campaigns this year, such as the Bucket List Broadcast, The Heroic Garden Festival and Failte are infl uenced by the real stories of our patients and their families, their interaction with Mercy Hospice and what is most important to them.We also are working to ensuring we meet the need of our city and it diverse and growing communities.Wishing you all a happy and fulfi lling year ahead.

Paul CouperCEO, Mercy Hospice

HELLO FROM PAUL

A big thank you to the following Charitable Trusts who have generously donated to Mercy Hospice:

Joyce Fisher Charitable Trust – covering costs of patient meals in our Inpatient Unit. Ted and Mollie Carr Endowment Fund – contributing towards Ponsonby Hospice Shop lease. Sir John Logan Campbell Residuary Estate – contributing towards equipment hire.Blue Waters Community Trust – contributing towards pharmaceutical supplies. NZ Lottery Grants Board – contributing towards our volunteer programme. The Trusts Community Foundation – contributing towards specialist equipment hire. New Zealand Community Trust – contributing towards our palliative care specialist services. Pub Charity – contributing towards pharmaceutical supplies.

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A day in the life of a palliative nurse Richard is a House Offi cer (a recently graduated doctor) who had a three month rotation through Mercy Hospice at the end of 2017.

Patients you have helped in 2017

1,035 People were referred to our service

312 People cared for at our Inpatient Unit

51%Female

72%were treated for cancer

28% non-cancer

8,526Community Nurse Visits

721 Family Support community visits

346Patients & their families attended our Manaaki Day Programme

565 People volunteered

Thank you!

What an extraordinary job our nurses have. The charge nurse arranged for me to spend two days as part of the Inpatient Unit nursing team and it truly was a profound experience. I looked after three amazing people who were in their fi nal days and have since passed. I will always remember them and the lessons I learnt.My good-spirited colleagues showed me the ropes and many were enjoying the chance to give a young doctor orders and instructions! My duties included preparing and administering medications, setting up infusions, as well as changing bedding and linen. It is very hands-on work, and the day goes by quickly. I also helped with the more personal aspects such as bathing, dressing, shaving, re-positioning and washing patients.

It was all new to me, and despite being focussed on the task at hand, several deeper themes became evident.Nurses stay ever-present even during times of suffering and sorrow. These can be challenging moments and I admired their strength and courage to be present.Hospice nurses provide such intimate care to people when they are physically weak, vulnerable or no longer conscious. At fi rst I found this confronting but the warmth, consideration and expertise that nurses approach it with is incredible. It is an opportunity to show kindness, provide comfort and to build a real bond with the person in need.I felt like I experienced the true spirit of nursing and it was a privilege to do this work. - Richard

49% Male

Doctor Richard Lowe experienced the true spirit of nursing.

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‘We can get through this together’For many years, business owner Danie dedicated more than 40 hours a week immersing himself into the throes of his three busy Auckland based speciality food stores.

Whenever anything needed to be done he was ready and willing. Some days he worked till 11pm to get a cake fi nished or to ensure a last minute request was met, but since mid-August last year he has been unable to work a full day.“A few hours and I’m exhausted, I never seem to have energy and I have constant pain.” At just aged 40, Danie, who co-owns The Original South African Shop, Gabby’s Cupcakes and Cake’s Sake NZ, with his partner Brendan, was diagnosed early last year with Stage 4 Colorectal Cancer.“At the time I did not know how to react. All I said to the doctor was ‘thank you…’ I stood up from my chair thanked the doctor again and said goodbye.” It was when Danie started having back pain in September 2016 that he consulted his doctor who recommended he visit a Chiropractor. But early last year he started experiencing stomach aches and

noticed that the worse the stomach pain was the worse his back would get.“I decided to pay my GP a visit again who recommended we have some blood test done. Based on the blood results my GP recommended I go for a Colonoscopy. As a result I was diagnosed with cancer.”Danie is hoping that with treatment he will be able to resume living his life. “I have moments where I’m very concerned that all the treatment may be for nothing, that I may die and that I have caused my family and friends to endure watching my treatment with no benefi t.”Danie was in and out of hospital with infections and pain related issues. It was Danie’s Radiation Specialist who suggested that Hospice may be able to assist him with his pain management.“My initial reaction to this was a defi nite ‘no’…’check in to check out’ was in my opinion, but I eventually gave in and ‘wow’ was I misinformed.”Initially Danie’s contact with Hospice was directly with a community nurse, who set appointments to visit both him and Brendan at home. These appointments allowed for Danie to be comfortable, but still have somebody to review and care for his pain management on a consistent basis.

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After a brief stint at Auckland Hospital, Danie’s pain had increased to a level beyond that which his medication was making any difference. It was at that point Hospice made a suggestion to be admitted to the Inpatient Unit and get a pain regime which met his requirements.

Danie remains hopeful that treatment will ensure normality to his everyday routine. He says sometimes he worries that he and Brendan have put time and energy into fi ghting cancer instead of enjoying each other and “being together with the time I have left, but Brendan’s attitude has been ‘let’s get this done, we can get through this together’. I honestly don’t know where I would be without Brendan, and just knowing that if I ever need or want assistance Hospice is available 24 hours 7 days for me, I could not ask for more.”

“At times I feel that I have become

a burden on my partner, my business

and my family”

“Currently I cherish every occasion when I feel ‘normal’ as they are very few these days. I want to live

my life how I used to, and contribute to my businesses, but I simply can’t, my body won’t allow me”

“I spent 16 days at the Hospice. I think cancer is one of those illnesses with which you cannot remove the emotion from the condition. They have to be dealt with together. I feel that Hospice managed to implement a system in which they could support the patient in both cases.”

Exciting news! Gabby’s Cupcakes has kindly offered to donate Mercy Hospice 10 delicious cupcakes for each $1,000 raised towards Lynne’s appeal. The cupcakes will make a huge difference towards what we can cater for when we hold our popular fundraising events, including Care for Tennis, Heroic Garden Festival, Fabric-A-Brac and Hospice Cuppa. Thank you Gabby’s Cupcakes for such a generous initiative!

For updates on our cupcake tally, check out our Mercy Hospice Facebook page & our May ‘Lifetimes’ edition.

www.gabbyscupcakes.co.nz

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‘Honoured and humbled’ to be recognised for 35 years’ service to Mercy Hospice.Community Palliative Care Nurse Susie Watkin talks about how her late sister inspired her into the line of work and how fortunate she is to move with the progression of hospice.

What inspired you to become a palliative nurse?The death of my sister inspired me. She died of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus at the age of 21 in London. She was doing her OE. Two years after her death I was going to go back to nursing after having our third child. I was sitting in the doctor’s surgery and I picked up the NZ Women’s Weekly magazine and I opened it up and there was this Sister Margaret Timms. She had just opened St Joseph’s Hospice, now Mercy Hospice. It was like a light bulb moment, that’s what I want to do, be a hospice nurse! That was my inspiration and I’m sure my sister led me to that.

When and how did you get started in this fi eld? A friend of mine worked in the surgical unit at Mercy Ascot I phoned her and asked her if she knew of any vacancies. She made an enquiry and I got an interview and I started on night shift, eventually working there for 13 and a half years.

What’s the average patient ratio?There are about 300 patients on our books at the moment. Referrals come in everyday and patients also die or they are discharged so the number of patients fl uctuates.

What’s the main task that you do when you visit a patient?The main task is symptom management. There is a lot of communication between us, Auckland Hospital, GPs and our own doctors, so it’s more of a triaging liaising, symptom management role.

How do you deal with the deaths of your patients?Hospice was three years old when I started. I’ve been fortunate to move with the progression of hospice. It was totally different when I started. Emotionally we just learnt on the job. Now we always have access to counsellors. That’s always very helpful.Anyone that comes into palliative care, has got certain empathy and a natural bent for it. I think without that you won’t survive.

What advice would you give to someone starting out in hospice care?To take things slowly, not to have too high an expectation, to ask lots of questions and to always have a support person.

What do you see for the future of palliative care?We are going to have to work very differently because of the increase in population and traffi c and the high number of our patients.

What does the 35 year service award mean to you?I was very honoured and humbled by the accolade and the lovely words. To me it’s not the longevity of the time, but the quality of the care, that I hopefully have been able to give. That’s what’s important to me. Being associated with Hospice for 35 years, for me, has always felt right and I have always had a passion for the work right from day one.

What do you think your sister would say?She would have been very supportive and loved to have known that this is what I have done. I’m sure she has had a big infl uence on things that have happened.

A gift in your Will Most bequests are made by supporters like you who want to help patients with life-limiting illnesses. These gifts are vital to our ongoing palliative care service, ensuring future generations of Aucklanders will have access to quality hospice services.

Name

Address

Please send me more information about leaving a gift to Mercy Hospice in my Will

Susie says her sister would be proud of her.

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After speaking with a social worker there I was told that Tony’s illness was terminal and that it would be too diffi cult for me to look after him at home and he would need hospital care. I was given a list of care facilities that may have vacancies, and could be suitable. None came up to my expectations. Tony had said, once he realised he couldn’t come back home, ‘put me somewhere nice’. I couldn’t believe our luck when I received a call to say Tony would be transferred to Mercy Hospice the next day. I thought we had won lotto.Although Tony was only in Mercy for three days before he passed away in the beautiful surroundings of Mercy, I think we’d done him proud. During his time at Mercy we were given amazing support.

A small way of giving back to Mercy In June 2014 my husband of 42 years, Tony passed away after a brief illness with Melanoma at the Mercy Hospice Inpatient Unit. Prior to him coming into Mercy Hospice, Tony was for a short time a patient at Auckland Hospital.

Melissa, our daughter, was living in Vancouver, at the time, and with the addition of a supporting letter from Mercy’s doctor we were able to get Melissa back home quicker. Also, after Tony passed away, we were offered ongoing counselling which we found very benefi cial. For many years I have been a volunteer for Mercy with street collecting, Trees of Remembrance, and helping in the Onehunga shop. In July 2017, I was given the opportunity to volunteer every Thursday as part of the Fundraising Team which I enjoy very much. This is just another small way of giving back to Mercy for the support that they have given us as a family.We are very grateful and honoured that we now have a lovely tile in Mercy’s beautiful courtyard in Tony’s name - Maureen

Tony (pictured left) and Maureen (pictured right)

4 easy ways to donate

Mail the coupon below to Mercy Hospice Auckland

Call (09) 361 5966 Donate Onlinewww.mercyhospice.org.nz

Internet Banking BNZ 02 0100 0815020 00Please confi rm your gift by email to: lesley.cranston@mercyhospice.org.nz

STEP 1: MY GIFTMy choice $

STEP 2: DONATION FREQUENCY Monthly by credit card One-off

STEP 3: MY PAYMENT Cheque made out to: Mercy Hospice Auckland Debit my credit card (please circle)VISA MasterCard AMEXCard number

Name on card

Signature

Expiry date: ___/___

YES! I would like to make a donation so every patient feels safe & protected by our highly specialised palliative care.

STEP 4: MY DETAILSTitle First name

Surname

Address

Email

PhonePlease send me information about: Monthly giving by direct debit Including Mercy Hospice in my will

Donations of $5 and over are tax deductible and will be receipted.Charities Commission # CC31621

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61 College Hill, Ponsonby, PO Box 47693, Ponsonby

Heroic Garden Festival 2018 A must-see event on many gardeners’ and nature lovers’ calendars. This festival gives attendees exclusive access to some of Auckland City’s most prestigious private gardens.Where: Central Auckland & Franklin When: Heroic Garden Party, 10am – 4pm, 9 February, entry $10Heroic Garden Festival, 10am – 5pm, 10 & 11 February, tickets are $60 each & give entry to all gardens or purchase individual entry at the gates. Adults: $10 and children $5 (children under 12, where permitted).To buy tickets, visit, www.heroicgardens.org.nz/shopTo volunteer, phone Nicole Turner 09 376 7571.

dates to

diary

Fáilte – An Irish Welcome Come along to Fáilte – An Irish Welcome and join Mercy Hospice for an Irish jig with a difference. Tickets include a three course meal, wine, whiskey and beer.Where: Cordis AucklandWhere: 6.30pm, Fri 2 March, 2018Cost: $195pp (Tables of 10 available)Book your tickets today! www.mercyhospice.org.nz/failte or contact our Fundraising Event Coordinator, Nicole Turner 09 376 7571. All proceeds go to Mercy Hospice.

Art@Heart ExhibitionLocal artists will exhibit their paintings and all proceeds from sales will be donated to the Mercy Hospice.Where: Gifford Gallery, 27a Poronui St, Mt EdenWhen: 10 – 25 February 2018Contact: admin@artistsfellowship.nz www.artistsfellowship.nz

Tractor Trek 2018Support Phil Aish’s Tractor Trek as he passes through Auckland. Save the date: Saturday, 3 March 2018www.tractortrek.org.nz