HEDDY SOROUR
The Hospice Hub had a fantastic Hike for Hospice event last Sunday, raising $40,500 in just one day. Their goal was $50,000, and an intrepid supporter, hearing about the shortfall, immediately stepped forward with an offer of $5,000 in matching funds.
“So, we’ll continue to accept donations until May 31 and hope we can close the gap,” said Anne Janssen, co-founder of The Hospice Hub.
Still in its infancy, The Hospice Hub has grown exponentially in the past three years. It currently serves Perth, Smiths Falls, Westport, Toledo, Elgin, Portland, MacDonald’s Corners, Brooke Valley, and Ompah, the entire area served by the Perth and Smiths Falls District Hospital. After launching hospice home support last October, the organization has served 38 clients and their families, made more than 60 home visits, supported 500 people through the grief and bereavement program, and responded to more than 20 system navigation requests. Nurses and volunteers currently field an average of three referrals a week.
To continue this work, The Hospice Hub must raise funds within the community to pay staff and meet the growing number of calls.
“You have to become an established hospice organization before you can access funding through the Ministry of Health,” Janssen added.
Even when that funding is secured, an outcome that seems likely, given the level of support and the obvious need in the region, the Ministry will only fund about 50 per cent of salary costs.
“The community funding is really important and goes toward supporting the positions we have because, being a rural community, we have more gaps in our healthcare system. Unlike our urban counterparts, we don’t have access to the same palliative care, so the needs of people in this area are more complex, which is why we need the staff we have and the funds to continue helping people,” concluded Joanne Desormeaux, nurse coordinator with The Hospice Hub.
