HospiceCare North Northumberland chief calls for more government funding to keep service sustainable
A Northumberland hospice chief has revealed that new government funding fails to address its main financial issue.
HospiceCare North Northumberland has been awarded £19,671 as part of a £25m government package to support essential upgrades in 158 hospices across England.
The money is designed to help fund urgent building repairs, better facilities and patient rooms, new outdoor spaces, and improved IT equipment.
However, Chris Orife, chief executive of HospiceCare North Northumberland, has explained that it is revenue funding rather than capital funding which is crucial to its continuation.
She explained: “Our operating costs in Hospice Care North Northumberland are £1.3m. We receive just £47,000 of that total from the NHS. The reminder of the costs are via our fundraising efforts, through our shop sales, via legacies and individual donations, from events and in general from the fabulous generosity of the people who use our services and from the families they leave behind.
“Whilst this capital money is welcome for hospices who deliver services in hospice buildings with inpatient facilities, for hospices like ours who deliver care to patients in their own homes, it is revenue money, money to pay the nurses and hospice support workers, our counsellors, and our staff, we need to ensure our services can be sustainably delivered in the years to come.
"We are pressing government through our MP and NHS contract managers to urgently address the chronic underfunding of our hospice sector, which so far has impacted on some hospices and led to reduced services.”
Minister of State for Care Stephen Kinnock said: “On top of our £125m capital investment in hospices across England, we have pledged £80m over the next three years for children’s hospices. And we are transforming palliative and end-of-life care by ending the postcode lottery, so every patient and family can get the high-quality care they deserve.”
The government will also publish a palliative care and end of life care modern service framework (MSF) this year, which will improve access, quality and sustainability in the sector.
The MSF is being developed through engagement with the sector and will address the crucial challenges the sector has warned about, including avoidable hospital admissions, variation in local and regional provision of care in terms of both access and quality, workforce shortages and gaps in 24/7 palliative care provision.