Estcourt Hospice Association patient numbers grow
With the help of the Estcourt Hospice Association staff, board and volunteers they are doing well in the palliative care field
The 27th annual general meeting of the Estcourt Hospice Association was held last Wednesday at Hospice House in Beechwood Road.
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After a moment of silence, chairman Anil Sookraj welcomed everyone and began the business of the day. Mr Sookraj’s report began with explaining how his tenure started at Hospice from organising the annual Christmas markets for eight years, which had to stop for safety reasons.
“Estcourt Hospice is a wonderful organisation that serves a critical need in the community… that of home-based palliative care,” he said.
Mr Sookraj informed the attendees that patient numbers have grown from 145 to 155. These patients are seen monthly and visited as per category. 280 visits are done, while 1350 interventions are carried out per month while working closely with the Department of Health in order to refer medical issues.
Estcourt Hospice interventions only include pain and symptom control, spiritual, emotional and psycho-social interventions. Hereafter, a round of applause was given to Belinda Smith, who fund-raises through initiatives such as the Hospice cake sales, the annual golf day and others.
“Belinda is a top-class fund-raiser and needs to be commended for all her efforts,” Mr Sookraj added.
It reflected on the financial reports that fund-raising for the year increased from R56,577 in 2018 to R88,038 in 2019. The Hospice Charity Shop is the main source of income, but it was mentioned that there has been a drop in the turnover and this is due to economic reasons.
The committee wished to thank the community for their donations, as this helps stabilise the finances. Mr Sookraj’s report touched on the training and education the association gives, which includes palliative care training and introductory courses.
Heartfelt thanks went to the Department of Health representative for being a major funder to the association.
The dedicated staff was also commended for working as a team throughout the year, and after managing Hospice successfully for the past four years, the board decided to change the job title of Sister Rena Licen from Clinical Manager to Chief Executive Officer in February this year.
Yvette Nunes was warmly welcomed into a part-time position of Clinical Manager, she brings aboard a wealth of experience and knowledge.
Following the financial report and appointment of financial auditors by Treasurer Quinten Swanepoel, the 2019/20 board members were elected and accepted their posts. They are ready to continue striving for excellence.
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