I think we’ve grown as an organisation to support our staff and make sure we have some resilience to go on day after day caring for those who need us.

The very word ‘hospice’ to some people means pain, death, but it isn’t like that at all. Of course some people die there and some come in pain - physical pain and the emotional pain of what’s going to happen to them, that they’re going to leave their loved ones behind. But when they realise the support that we offer, it’s a different world. It’s almost as if we lift a burden from them, that we’re here to help and nothing is unsurmountable without the right support and help.

We can’t change the inevitable but we can change the way we respond to people. We listen to their stories and their concerns and support them through this difficult time.

 When I walk around the hospice I love hearing laughter, people having a joke, people dancing, sunlight, flowers, life.

Knowing that you make the difference to every day and knowing that as a team we’re all doing it together.