Life at St Mary's Hospice

In this episode, we talk about Hospice funding. Did you know that St Mary's only receives around one-fifth of the money we need each year from the Government, which means that eight out of ten patients have their care paid for by voluntary donations? We meet Lottery Manager Clare Shields and hear from Corporate Fundraiser Annabelle Holloway on how to raise money during a cost of living crisis. We also get to hear from our Head of Fundraising Helen Carlson about the strategic work the team does to make sure the money keeps arriving. We also get to meet 88-year-old Dr Syvia Wood, who talks about jumping out of a plane to raise funds for St Mary's.

In this episode, we meet Kate Davison, our clinical lead, and learn about what makes a palliative nurse, as well as diving deeper into the range of services we offer. We also meet Dr Gitta Khoury, who talks about coming to the Lakes from Spain just at the start of the pandemic and learn about how hospice care is about so much more than just medical intervention. We also hear from Jo Firth about the inspiration behind her becoming a care worker, and learn why Chaplin Peter enjoys visiting St Mary's so often.

In today's episode we meet our gardening group, who meet regularly to work in our garden as an outlet to managing grief. We also learn about some of the other services offered by our charity, and from Kirsty, one of our health care assistants, about the options we all have in death.

In this episode we meet St Mary's CEO Val Stangoe. She tells us about managing a Hospice, and how they strive constantly to help more people each year.

In the first episode we'll tell you a little about the Hospice's backstory, how it was established and what it does to serve the needs of its community in Furness and South Lakes. You'll meet Kate Davison, who leads our clinical teams, and Clare Tyson, who runs the Orangery Cafe, who talks about balancing the buzz of running a thriving cafe with providing final meals for some patients or catering for families who are going through difficult times; who knew food could be such an important part of care? And we head on onto the streets of Cumbria with Beryl, the Hospice's lottery canvasser, who's trying to raise the funds to help pay for care.

Welcome to Life at St Mary's Hospice. A new podcast series that takes you behind the scenes at the Hospice, meeting the staff who serve the community in Furness and South Lakes.