Torquay family praise Rowcroft's 'angels on earth' team

The family of a Torquay man supported by Rowcroft Hospice carers during his last days have told how he described them as 'angels on earth.'

During Hospice Care Week Rowcroft has  been joining hospices across the UK to celebrate the extraordinary difference hospice care makes to patients and families every single day. 

With the theme for this year’s Hospice Care Week ‘Hospice care is more than you think’, Rowcroft has highlighted the many ways that care goes beyond what most people imagine – not just in its Inpatient Unit, but in homes and communities right across South Devon.

At Rowcroft, hospice care is about so much more than pain relief, medical support and symptom management. It’s about helping people to live as well as possible in the time they have, and offering compassion, comfort and dignity through life’s most difficult moments.

One family who experienced this first-hand was Jacqui and Eddie Lyttle from Torquay. Rowcroft supported them when Eddie was nearing the end of his life after living with kidney cancer and other complex conditions. Jacqui said Rowcroft’s care far exceeded their expectations:

“The Community Team attended to every aspect of our care. The small things, like helping us manage practicalities for Eddie’s comfort, made such a big difference. The team even helped us to arrange for Eddie’s equipment to be delivered to a hotel in Cornwall so we could get away for a few days," she said.

“Eddie called the Community Team ‘angels on earth’. They helped minimise his pain and discomfort and ensured he retained as good a quality of life as possible. Rowcroft also offered us both tremendous support through complementary therapy. Eddie felt an instant connection and relaxation; he was able to open up to his complementary therapist, and this helped to ease his anxiety.

“From the moment we were referred to Rowcroft, I never felt alone. The hospice continued to support me after Eddie’s death through a ‘Spaces for Nature’ bereavement group. It was a brilliant support network where we could share our grief and experiences with others who understood. There was no judgement; and we did some amazing activities, like mindfulness and pottery which were healing and helpful. We’ve become life-long friends ever since.

“From our very first interaction with Rowcroft to the support I continue to receive, everything was incredible – and life-changing for us.”

Each year, Rowcroft cares for around 2,500 patients and their loved ones across South Devon. With 80 per cent of patients supported in the community, Rowcroft’s Community and Hospice at Home teams enable people with life-limiting illnesses to remain in the place they most want to be – usually their own home – and to avoid unnecessary hospital admissions at the end of life.

But despite the vital difference hospices make, many are under threat – with rising demand, soaring costs, and insufficient government funding. According to recent figures from Hospice UK, two in five hospices across the UK are planning cuts to essential services. 

Hospice UK has launched a nationwide campaign urging people to write to their MP to ask them to attend a special parliamentary event on October 15 where MPs will hear what local hospices need to secure their future, care for more patients, and support the NHS. 

Rowcroft’s CEO Mark Hawkins said: "Hospice care is a lifeline for thousands of families in South Devon and across the UK. But without urgent action, many services will be forced to shrink at the very time when demand is growing. We need the government to recognise that hospice care is more than you think – and that it deserves proper, sustainable funding.

“It takes just a few minutes to email your MP using Hospice UK’s online template – and your voice could help protect hospice care for generations to come.”

To add your voice to the Hospice UK campaign, go to: 

https://action.hospiceuk.org/hospice-care-much-more-than-you-think

Or if you’d like to make a donation to support Rowcroft Hospice, visit: www.rowcrofthospice.org.uk