Serving Aldershot, Camberley, Farnborough, Farnham, Fleet,  Frimley, Godalming, Guildford, Lightwater and Yateley England in affiliation with the Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice. Annual Chairman’s Report October 2010 I am delighted to introduce the seventeenth annual report of Hospice Home Support (HHS) and report that the important work of supporting seriously ill patients continues. Palliative care remains a priority for the government, in the second annual report on the End of Life Care Strategy it reaffirms its commitment to support people's preferences about how to have a good death, and states that it will work with providers, including hospices, to ensure that people have the support they need. Professor Mike Richards, National Clinical Director for End of Life Care, states, "End of life is the final health outcome for all of us, so it's crucial that we get it right". We believe that our figures for the year, over 1,000 visits to patients, demonstrate the contribution that HHS makes to further this objective. Patients at the end of life need the support of a wide range of services to achieve this aim. HHS works in partnership with primary health care services and the Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice, to help   patients achieve their preferred place of care whilst experiencing the best possible quality of life.  We welcomed seven new volunteers earlier this year and they are already working hard supporting patients. Unfortunately we were not very successful in our attempts to get editorial coverage in the local papers for this course - excellent coverage prior to the previous training course, in 2009, had produced a bumper crop of fifteen volunteers. We are still fortunate in having a good number of volunteers and have therefore decided not to hold a training course this autumn but will be recruiting again in the New Year. Our volunteers have a difficult and responsible task working by themselves in patient's homes - they never know what difficult issues may arise including that of suicide, currently very topical. Following a training day on suicide, held in the spring, we have updated our guidelines which are part of our Lone Worker policy. In turn this has necessitated the development of a confidentiality policy. As a general rule confidentiality is maintained within the organisation but there are circumstances when, if there is a risk of serious harm to the patient or others, external professionals may need to be involved. This new policy is contained in an insert that is given to patients, along with other information about HHS, at the first assessment ensuring that patients are kept fully informed. Emails and the internet are no longer considered new technology but a normal part of everyday life; they have enabled us to communicate more quickly and efficiently but with this new means of communication comes the imperative to keep data secure. As we know from the media, who delight in reporting frequent losses of data, this does not always happen! We have reviewed our procedures and any information pertaining to patients is kept secure; identification is avoided either, by using first names only, or it is password protected and thus compliant with the data protection act. After many months of uncertainty the offices at Surrey Heath House have been reorganised. The police have moved into the building and the voluntary organisations now have 30% less floor space. This has resulted in significantly less storage space, disruption to the phone system and the need to store all our files and equipment during the actual move.  Linda, our very efficient administrator, has borne the brunt of this work and the committee has taken the opportunity to review our files deciding what must be kept and what is no longer relevant.  Although this operation has been difficult we are very grateful to Surrey Heath Borough Council - the provision of office space alongside other charities and VSSH (Voluntary Services Surrey Heath) is an ideal location and provides good support for our organisation. We are sorry to see Elizabeth Lowden depart from the committee; Elizabeth has been with HHS since 1997, initially as a volunteer, then an Area Organiser and lastly as a committee member and Vice Chairman. We thank her for her hard work over the years and her great contribution to the organisation. Unfortunately our committee is now rather depleted and we will be seeking new members. The team of Area Organisers has been stable over the last year, they are a strong team who continue to strengthen our links with the Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice by regular meetings with staff in the Day Hospice, Community Team and Patient and Family Services. The crucial work of visiting patients is carried out by volunteers and I would like to thank them very much for their hard work and commitment during the last year. The work is demanding and can be lonely, but it does make a difference to the patients we support, who are often facing multiple difficulties and challenges towards the end of their lives. I continue to receive excellent reports of their work from both patients and staff at the Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice - I think we can all take pride in an organisation that makes a difference.    In addition I would like to thank Volunteer Surrey Primary Care Trust who provide financial support; Surrey Heath Borough Council for the provision of office space in Surrey Heath House where we receive the support of Voluntary Services - Surrey Heath; The Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice for provision of a training venue and ongoing support for HHS; Primary Health Care and Hospital Colleagues who continue to value and use our services; The Church of SS Peter and John Camberley whose facilities we use for committee meetings; and Chris Bradford for auditing the accounts Finally I would like to thank fellow members of Hospice Home Support who make this work possible: The area organisers, trainers and supervisors, especially Lynne Loughrey our training co-ordinator; Linda Roberts, who continues to provide an extremely efficient, reliable basis for the organisation; My fellow committee members for their hard work and continuing loyal support Dr. Margaret P Guy Chairman Return to Top Return to Top Chairman’s Report Treasurer’s Report Area Organisers Report Training Coordinator’s Report Affiliated to the Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice Registered Charity No. 1024866 Monica’s Website Design and Flexisoft L.L.C. www.hospicehomesupport.org.uk