Statement from Hospice Alliance NI in response to meeting the Health Minister on 20th May

Hospice Alliance Northern Ireland met with the Health Minister on Wednesday 20 May, to talk about the growing financial pressures facing hospice services across the region and the urgent need for sustainable funding.

The Minister and his officials have been aware for a long time of the funding crisis now facing all hospices (including the Children’s Hospice, the only one of its kind in NI) with collective deficits of approximately £4 million across the four member hospices of the Hospice Alliance NI.

The collective cost of delivering hospice services in Northern Ireland is over £40 million each year, of which only £10 million comes from Government funding. These patients would otherwise not receive care due to the ever-increasing levels of demand for palliative care services. Hospices in Northern Ireland provide 20,000 nights of care to 13,000 patients every year in our combined 57 beds, 365 days a year, as well as undertaking 30,000 community visits by specialist palliative care nurses, caring for patients in their own homes.

Whilst the Minister acknowledged the seriousness of the situation, he also indicated that there is currently no additional funding available. However, he has asked for a few days to consider whether there is anything further that can be done to help alleviate our funding crisis. We welcomed this opportunity for further consideration and look forward to the Minister’s response before the end of the week.

Like any organisations in this position, hospices need to be sustainable, and without appropriate financial support that is a challenge. We don’t want to reduce services in any way, but hospices across Northern Ireland are already having to make difficult decisions and without urgent intervention, the sustainability of services cannot be guaranteed.

Without the generosity of our donors and the continued support from the local community we simply would not be able to sustain our services.

Hospices remain committed to working constructively with the Department of Health to find a solution that protects hospice care now and into the future. Our priority is, and always will be, to ensure that patients and families receive the compassionate, specialist care they need at the most difficult times in their lives.

Liz Cuddy, Chief Executive, Evora Hospice Care;

Donall Henderson, Chief Executive, Foyle Hospice;

Paula Heneghan, Associate Director of Strategic Partnerships & Service, Marie Curie;

Trevor McCartney, Chief Executive, Northern Ireland Hospice, and Hospice Alliance NI Chair

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