The rooms may look different when Sunshine Coast Hospice moves next month, but at its heart, not much is changing.
Hospice will continue to provide care and support in the new Silverstone long-term care facility, and with greater capacity.
The organization will transition from having two suites at the soon-to-close Shorncliffe Intermediate Care Home to four dedicated suites at Silverstone, which opens in January.
Hospice has provided palliative and grief support services, as well as advanced care and planning support, over the past 35-plus years. Their programs include one-to-one companioning, palliative day programs, counselling, specific support around end of life, as well as support for friends and families, said Tess Huntly, executive director of hospice.
The palliative team refers people to the dedicated hospice suites, said Huntly.
“We will be continuing to support people whether they're at home or in hospital, or in a long-term care facility, which includes the rest of Silverstone,” she said. “We provide our end-of-life support wherever people need us in the community.”
“It's not just the beds, it's about the whole environment,” Huntly said explaining that many people prefer to die at home, but that's not possible for everyone. Hospice tries to bridge this gap by providing specific support to an individual. “It's really important that [people] have this choice to use hospice if that is what best suits their needs,” she said.
Having greater capacity for hospice care helps support the wider health care system by alleviating pressure on institutions such as acute care beds at Sechelt Hospital, Huntly said.
“Most people don't want to go to a hospital if they don't have to,” she said. “If they can go to a more home-like environment and have their symptoms managed, that's preferable.”
Huntly said that hospice aims to have capacity that meets the needs of the community, and will update its strategy as the demographics of the community change.
The space in Silverstone is an interim situation for hospice, which Huntly calls a step in the right direction while they work towards creating a dedicated residential hospice space.
"Our vision is a permanent residential facility that will be a place where families can be comfortable and near their loved ones,” she said. “This community-owned facility will offer at least eight suites, providing a combination of hospice care, palliative respite and short-term stays for symptom management in a home-like, safe setting."
Jordan Copp is the Coast Reporter’s civic and Indigenous affairs reporter. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.
