Marie Curie People July 2013 by mark whatham

People Marie Curie

Marie Curie Cancer Care’s newspaper for staff and volunteers

JULY 2013

A BAKE FROM THE OLD ROUTINE T

FLOWER POWER CELEBRATIONS

D DYNAMIC DAY THERAPY T

TV stars join supporters for su national brew-up n

Colourful events celebrate the work of volunteers

H How our Cardiff aand the Vale hospice tteam offers support

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PARTNERSHIP SET TO TRANSFORM CARE New two-year programme will redesign services for patients and families across Northern Ireland A programme to redesign and improve care for patients and families with palliative and end-of-life care needs across Northern Ireland is under way. The two-year programme – entitled Transforming Your Palliative and End of Life Care – is part of Transforming Your Care, a major government initiative to reform health and social care across Northern Ireland. The programme will use the Delivering Choice methodology developed by Marie Curie and used successfully in 18 large-scale projects across the UK. It will be the biggest project of its kind to date. Marie Curie is working in partnership with the Health and Social Care Board and other organisations, including independent hospices, charities and commercial organisations, across the ﬁve Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland. The programme will also involve GPs, local commissioners, allied health professionals and others involved in care for patients and families. Marie Curie’s Head of Policy and Public Affairs for Northern Ireland, Joan McEwan, said: “We are delighted to have this

Delivering Choice methodology The Delivering Choice methodology which will be used for Transforming Your Palliative and End of Life Care project was developed by Marie Curie in 2004 and has been used for 18 projects in different parts of the UK. It introduces a whole-systems approach to end-of-life care provision.

opportunity to help shape the future of end of life care in Northern Ireland, and lead in its design. This will be the ﬁrst time that this methodology will be rolled out across a whole region – one with such a varied geographical footprint. “It is all about ensuring that care is totally patient-centred. The evidence from our Delivering Choice projects in Somerset and other areas shows that when you have effective care in place, patients are much less likely to die in hospital.”

ANALYSIS There will be three main stages to Transforming Your Palliative and End of Life Care. Initially, the project team will analyse the current position, looking at current services and their strengths, and where there are gaps. They will analyse data and talk to patients and health professionals. The second stage will involve the redesign of current services or the design of new services. The third stage will implement the redesigned and new services. There will also be an evaluation to identify successes and learnings. “The ﬁrst two stages will take approximately nine months. We hope to be caring for our ﬁrst patients under the Transforming Your Palliative and End of Life Care programme by summer 2014,” Joan said. “Transforming Your Palliative and End of Life Care is getting service providers – like ourselves and the independent hospices – sitting around the table with key stakeholders, such as commissioners, GPs, other healthcare professionals and patient and service user

ROYAL VISITOR FOR NEW HOSPICE Marie Curie’s Royal Patron His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales met patient Margaret Atkinson and her grandson Daniel when he opened the new Marie Curie Hospice for the West Midlands. SEE PAGES 10 -11

groups. Together, we are looking at what is the best solution for patients at the end of their lives for each trust. “We also anticipate the programme will help to address future pressures on healthcare from increasing life expectancy, which means that more people will be living longer and with multiple conditions. “The aim is to improve end of life care for patients and carers and give more people the option to be cared for in the place of their choice, which we know is home rather than hospital.”

Services that have been set up and run successfully under Marie Curie Delivering Choice projects include rapid response nursing teams which can be called out of hours, fast-track discharge nurses, redesigned hospice day services, support for care home staff and the Marie Curie Helper Service. Marie Curie and the Northern Ireland Health and Social Care Board recently hosted a joint Chief Executives’ summit with leading Board and Trust stakeholders involved in palliative care to launch the programme.

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News YOU CAN DO THIS MONTH 5 THINGS 1. WIN A MOUNTAIN OF VOUCHERS This year, why not take on a mountain and hiking challenge in aid of Marie Curie? Whether you conquer Ben Nevis or trek across the moors of Dartmoor, it’s the perfect opportunity to get away from it all and enjoy the great outdoors. If you sign up to a challenge before 31 July you’ll be entered into a prize draw to be in with a chance of winning £500 worth of vouchers courtesy of holidaycottages.co.uk. To read the terms and conditions or find your mountain challenge, head to mariecurie.org.uk/mountain 2. GET MORE KIDS TO GROW DAFFODILS Do you, your relatives or friends have children aged 3–11? Then ask their teachers to sign up for Mini Pots of Care, Marie Curie’s florid fundraising activity. This autumn, all the budding gardeners involved will get a free kit of daffodils to plant and care for, while learning about science and nature. And next spring, they’ll celebrate their blooms by painting flower pots and holding fundraisers for us. This year, we’re aiming to sign up 3,000 schools, nurseries and groups – and we need your help. So please tell everyone to register by calling 0845 052 4184, emailing minipots@mariecurie.org.uk or visiting mariecurie.org.uk/minipotsofcare 3. FILL UP YOUR SHOPPING TROLLEY Christmas might seem a long way off, but it’ll be here before you can say “Hark the herald angels sing”. That’s why you might want to start thinking about shopping for all those presents. And what better place to start than with the Marie Curie Christmas catalogue, as 100% of profits help the charity? Head to mariecurie.org.uk/shop now to browse our online shop and stock up on Christmas cards, gifts and more. 4. HELP SOMEBODY SHARE THEIR STORY Have you heard that we have a Share your story form on our main website? By filling this in, people with a connection to Marie Curie can tell us all about their experiences. Whether their loved one was cared for by our nurses or they’ve supported us in some way, their story could help to raise awareness of our work. But first we need you to help spread the word. So please, include the link to our form – mariecurie.org.uk/mystory – in your emails this month. 5. STEP OUT FOR MARIE CURIE Walk Ten, our 10k twilight walk, kicks off this month. This is your chance to gain exclusive access to some of the UK’s most stunning locations, enjoy live entertainment as the sun goes down, share an unforgettable summer’s evening with your friends and family and raise money for people with terminal illnesses. So take your first step now and sign up at mariecurie.org.uk/walkten. Or call 0845 052 4184 for more information.

People

MEDICAL ADVISER GIVEN OBE HONOUR Marie Curie’s Medical Adviser, Dr Teresa Tate, has been awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for services to Marie Curie and to palliative care. Teresa was delighted to receive the award. “I think it’s great that there is a recognition of palliative care in this way,” she said. “This is a reflection of the work of clinical colleagues within the charity and further afield.” Teresa retires this month, after just over 13 years with Marie Curie. She has been Medical Adviser throughout a period of rapid change and development, when the charity has grown in size, and developed into a high profile organisation leading end-of-life care in the UK. Until recently, Teresa was – among many other appointments – Deputy National Clinical Director for End-of-Life Care in England. “It’s been very exciting to be part of the development of Marie Curie and to have contributed to what the charity is doing to lead in palliative care and end of life care,” she said. “We have achieved so much by engaging with the public, the NHS and the wider world.” Also awarded the OBE was Jo Hockley, now a Nurse Consultant at St Christopher’s Hospice, who first persuaded Teresa to move from radiotherapy to the new discipline of palliative medicine in 1988. “It’s been a really exciting field to be involved in over the years, because the

RECOGNITION: Dr Teresa Tate said her OBE reﬂects the work of her clinical colleagues

speciality of palliative medicine was only recognised in 1987. I’ve been lucky to be in the right place at the right time,” Teresa said. Also honoured in the Queen’s Birthday Honours were Legacy Advisor Judy Glossop, Marie Curie Nurse Iris Honor Wright and former Matron of the Marie Curie Hospice, Solihull Sally Derry, all of whom were awarded the British Empire Medal. Judy, who joined Marie Curie Cancer Care 19 years ago in September, was honoured for services to people with

cancer. She said: “What a surprise! I could not believe it. Of course, it’s not just for me, it’s for everyone who has supported us – a lot of our volunteers have been here longer than I have. “My daughter, Sally, who died aged eight, has been my inspiration, and has given me strength.” Former Matron Sally Derry spent the last 22 years volunteering for Solihull Bereavement Counselling Service. She described her volunteering as “an absolute privilege”.

Major Windows upgrade offers speed and security benefits All Marie Curie Cancer Care’s 1,800 desktop and laptop computers are set to be upgraded to Microsoft Windows 7 and Office 2010. The major upgrade, which will begin next month, will mean all computers will be on a new operating system and Office application by the end of February 2014. Project Manager for IT Operations Janette Hellyer said: “We need to do this as Microsoft is withdrawing support in 2014 for our current systems, Windows XP and Office 2003. This would leave the charity’s computers exposed to viruses and security issues, and it would

be impossible for our IT service partner to support the computer users. “The new system has various additional beneﬁts: it is built with better security options, faster at executing certain tasks;

Courtesy of Dell Inc.

it’s compatible with a greater range of business applications; and we will have less compatibility issues when sending or receiving Office documents with organisations that have already transitioned to Windows 7 and Office 2010.” The IT team is currently testing how compatible Windows 7 is with the charity’s present business applications. Once this has been successfully completed and piloted, the upgrade will roll out across Marie Curie, starting with devices at Albert Embankment and moving on to computers at Pontypool, Links Place, the Marie Curie Hospices, Swindon and then fundraising and nursing offices.

Marie Curie

Marie Curie People is the charity’s official newspaper for staff and volunteers. It is published monthly.

Editor: Nick Moulton Writers: Clair Whiteﬁeld, Lara Jennings, Rob Jones, Angela Burton Designers: Artful Dog Publishing and Marie Curie Creative Services

Repro by: Selsey Press Printed by: Mortons Managed & distributed by: CDL Circulation: 6,500

MARIE CURIE PEOPLE NEEDS YOUR NEWS. Send stories to Editor Nick Moulton, Creative Services, Marie Curie Cancer Care, 89 Albert Embankment, London, SE1 7TP. Email nick.moulton@mariecurie.org.uk or phone me on 020 7599 7706 and I’ll draft a story from your call.

July 2013 People 3

Marie Curie Skinny Dip 2013

SUPPORTERS GRIN AND BARE IT Dazzling blue skies and chilly water greeted swimmers at this year’s national Marie Curie Skinny Dip. The four simultaneous events in Wales, Essex, East Lothian and Dorset saw 400 naked swimmers braving icy waves to raise more than £50,000 for the charity. Isobel Paul, Regional Events Manager, Scotland, said: “We couldn’t have had better weather. The sunshine across the beach so early in the morning was absolutely glorious and the smiling faces of our amazing fundraisers added to the

wonderful scenery to make the morning a very memorable event for all involved.” Claire Notman, Regional Events Fundraiser, Wales and the West, who watched as 91 fundraisers waded into Oxwich bay on the Gower Peninsula, said: “The weather was amazing and the atmosphere was even better – everyone just got into the spirit of things and had a fantastic time. When I said how much we’d raised, there were gasps from the dippers. It really was such a wonderful, worthwhile event.”

David Murdoch, one of the dippers at Yellowcraigs beach in East Lothian, said: “It was great fun. I signed up for the dip spurred on by the fact that a friend of mine who had gone into remission had relapsed. She is fortunate to have friends that can look after her, but so many people don’t have this support, which is where Marie Curie steps in.” Regional Events Manager Jon Duckham, who helped organise the dip at Studland Beach in Dorset, said: “It was a perfect morning and a wonderful atmosphere for

those taking part to enjoy a naked run into the sea. What was also fantastic was the incredible amount raised, which exceeded our expectations.” The national sponsored skinny dip event was the winning proposal in Marie Curie’s Big Idea competition for innovative fundraising ideas in 2012. Community Fundraiser (Wales and West) Natalie Taylor suggested developing the event as a national promotion, based on supporter Alison Powell’s successful event in South Wales.

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Policy CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S VIEW

Everything in our hospice gardens is rosy In June, I was in Belfast and Liverpool, enjoying meeting patients and their families – and even a dog called Hector – as well as staff, volunteers and supporters. In both cities, there was sunshine, so perhaps for that reason I looked even more closely at the beautiful hospice gardens. I met volunteer gardeners in Liverpool, some of whom were receiving long-service awards. What a fantastic job they do! But it is not just me highlighting their value and importance to us. Research has shown that the natural environment improves our sense of wellbeing. This applies whether we are patients, families, staff or volunteers. The sight of greenery has been shown to prompt a relaxation response in our brains and spending time in the garden can reduce tension, blood pressure and help us manage stress. So our gardens at Marie Curie are important for all of us. We have also commissioned research ourselves and found that nearly 90% of people at the end of their lives feel access to a garden or green open space is essential, with over half of them saying gardens hold some of their happiest memories. So well done and thank you to all our volunteer gardeners. You are doing a really important job. This is also one of the reasons we are so delighted to be one of the charities that benefits from the money raised by the National Garden Scheme (NGS). Over the past 16 years, it has donated over £6million to us – think how many patients have benefited. The scheme consists of people with gardens, large and small, opening them to the public for a small entry fee, with the money raised going to a number of charities, including Marie Curie. During the NGS Festival Weekend I went down to Oxfordshire to a garden and met not only the owners, who have been fantastic supporters of ours, but also one of our nurses and Anneka Rice – who, of course, arrived by helicopter. NGS wanted to use Anneka to publicise what they are doing, giving people so much pleasure but also highlighting how charities benefit from the funding. It was tipping down with rain on the way there and when I arrived, but, as the helicopter came in, the clouds blew away and we could all enjoy the garden. Thousands of gardens are open in England and Wales throughout the summer. There is a similar organisation in Scotland, but I don’t know if there is one in Northern Ireland. So if you get the chance please visit one of them both for your own wellbeing and because you will be supporting our work. • For more on the NGS see page 14.

Dr Jane Collins, Chief Executive

GARDEN FESTIVAL: Dr Jane Collins with TV and radio presenter Anneka Rice

NEW STRATEGY TO BOOST DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION Marie Curie Cancer Care is currently developing its strategy for 2014–2017 which will reaffirm its commitment to being an inclusive and diverse organisation and employer. The charity is developing a supporting diversity and inclusion framework and action plan that will illustrate how it plans to deliver equality of access and quality of care to all sections of the community. Dr Ian Gittens, Senior Project Manager (Diversity), said: “We want to ensure that all Marie Curie service users regardless of their age, gender, gender identity, race, religion or belief, marital status or sexual orientation receive a quality service in an environment that is free from discrimination of any kind. “A great responsibility is placed on our staff and volunteers to ensure that these expectations are met. We will be

INCLUSION: Dr Ian Gittens wants to ensure a quality service, free of discrimination

monitoring service user proﬁles, feedback and service outcomes to assess how effectively we manage this commitment.” Research suggests that black, Asian and minority ethnic communities are

not accessing end of life services in the numbers that might be expected and is hoped that the diversity and inclusion framework will develop ways to raise awareness of the charity and its services among these communities. The plan will also emphasise the charity’s commitment to providing equal opportunities for all employees. Business Partner, HR Services Ceri Evans said: “Our intention is that the talents and skills available within the community are valued and considered and that our workforce is a reﬂection of the population we serve. “We will ensure that all reasonable steps are taken to ensure that our career information is accessible and that individuals are treated equally and fairly and that decisions on recruitment, selection, training and career development are based on clear, objective criteria.”

Dr Adrian Tookman named as new Clinical Director Dr Adrian Tookman will be Marie Curie Cancer Care’s new Clinical Director from September. Adrian (pictured), who has been Medical Director at the Marie Curie Hospice, Hampstead, since 1985, will work closely with the charity’s new Medical Director, Bill Noble, and Operations Director Caroline Hamblett. He said: “There is a wealth of medical talent at Marie Curie and my role will be to ensure this is used to best effect, and bring the clinical leadership and focus the charity needs. Dr David

Oxenham, the current Clinical Director, has done a fantastic job and I want to build on his successes. “I see my role at Marie Curie as encouraging the excellent minds in our medical teams to learn from each other and share new palliative care practices. My aim is to encourage innovation and ensure clinical engagement in leadership. Our hospices should be recognised as units that deliver the very best care; this will ensure that Marie Curie is seen as the national leader in specialist palliative care.”

CV: Adrian Tookman ● Medical Director, Marie Curie Hospice, Hampstead, since 1985. ● Medical Director at The Royal Free Hospital until 2012. ● Led three projects at The Royal Free, addressing organisational culture and implementing Schwartz Rounds; improving infection control; and delivering a public health programme within an Acute Trust. ● Set up PallE8, an integrated palliative care system, to ensure 4 million people in North East and North Central London receive equitable palliative care. Adrian will continue to lead PallE8.

Marie Curie at Commissioning Show Marie Curie had a strong presence at the Commissioning Show – England’s largest national event aimed at NHS commissioners. Over the two days, delegates attended presentations by inﬂuential ﬁgures on national and local issues, including one by Dr Jane Collins on the importance of joining up services around the patient. Jane used Marie Curie’s Somerset Delivering Choice Programme as an example of an effective integrated end-oflife care model that reduces unnecessary hospital admissions and improves patients’ experience of care at the end of life. Other themes echoed in presentations were the importance of evidence-led services and patient empowerment.

The Health Service Journal, distributed in delegate packs, contained a four-page supplement on Marie Curie, featuring articles about the charity’s involvement in end of life care, case studies and best practice examples from across the UK. Catherine Salmon, Marketing Manager in Caring Services and Research, said staff at Marie Curie’s exhibition stand spoke to a variety of delegates about the work of the charity. “The show provided us with an opportunity to engage healthcare professionals in discussions about gaps in end of life care services in their local areas,” she said. “It was encouraging to speak to designated end of life care leads from Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs,

OUR TEAM: Marie Curie’s Rachel Poynor, Jacqueline Jacobs, Paul Hariness and Dan Farag at the show

formerly PCTs), which suggests that many CCGs have gauged the importance of good end of life care both for patients and families.” The show was attended by 6,000 delegates and 300 exhibitors.

July 2013 People 5

News

TV star bakers help us serve up a Blooming Great Success This year’s Blooming Great Tea Party is set to be even bigger and better than the last, with thousands of tea parties gracing the nation’s homes, gardens and offices – and even the Twittersphere. The charity held its first week-long ‘Care for a Cuppa?’ virtual tea party, which involved invitations to its Twitter followers between 11am and 3pm to join us for a brew and tea-related fun and games. Lots of supporters joined the fun, sharing their tea party plans and entering our daily competitions, which included tweeting pictures of themselves posing as teapots. Not to be left out, queen of cakes Mary Berry posed as a teapot when she stopped by to visit Frogmore House in Windsor, one of the NGS gardens raising money for Marie Curie Cancer Care. Great British Bake Off runner-up James Morton also visited the Marie Curie Number of people Hospice Glasgow to show who have signed up his support. to hold a tea party*. Meanwhile, the Marie *At the time of going to print Curie Fundraising Group in chocolate and banana cake. Ledbury held a hugely successful She said: “I am completely weekend for the charity, raising overwhelmed by the generosity £2,000. The event included fine wines and kindness of everyone and I highly and canapés served on the Saturday recommend hosting a Blooming night, followed by a Blooming Great Tea Great Tea Party – you feel blooming Party in Wellington Heath in the glorious great afterwards.” sunshine on Sunday. And Suzy Pelta, winner of ITV1’s FOR MORE INFORMATION Lorraine Show cake baking competition, held a hugely successful Blooming If you haven’t yet registered to Great Tea Party at home. Official hold your own Blooming Great Tea Blooming Great Tea Party blogger Suzy Party, what are you waiting for? hosted an event for 40 friends and family. Registration is open until Wednesday Treats on offer included Suzy’s Marie 31 July, so register now at Curie Lemon Custard Cream Cake and mariecurie.org.uk/teaparty her Lorraine Show competition-winning

4,909

POUR PERFORMANCE: (above, left to right) Jane McPartlin, Sheonad Laidlaw, TV baker James Morton, Susan Helps, Janie Pearson and Kelly Hughes; (below) celebrity cook Mary Berry and Tracey North, Marie Curie Community Manager for Berkshire

Hospices set for spring completion The refurbishment programmes to enhance the Marie Curie Hospices in Bradford, Hampstead and Newcastle are set to start this autumn and be completed by March 2014. The Marie Curie Hospice, Bradford works are planned to improve the in-patient rooms, ensuite facilities and family area. Hospice Manager Elaine Hill said: “Our aim is to continue to provide the best possible service we can to patients while the work is progressing. All the tools and materials the contractors will be using, and their working practices in general, have been decided upon to minimise noise and disruption to patients.” The Bradford Hospice is 11 years old, and these improvement works are key to bringing the site up to date and enhancing the environment. “The hospice is starting to look a little tired, so these redesigns will make a massive difference,” Elaine said. Improvement works to the Marie Curie Hospice, Newcastle, and Marie Curie Hospice, Hampstead, also start in the autumn. Estates Manager Paul Cross said: “We will be working carefully to minimise disruption to patients across all these builds. The schedule is tight to complete all the work we want to do but we are conﬁdent we’ll achieve it, because we have great teams in place.”

ENHANCEMENT PROGRAMME: How the conservatory at the Marie Curie Hospice, Bradford will look after refurbishment

Business continuity plan gets site up and running quickly after sudden power failure When the Marie Curie Referral Centre in Pontypool was hit by a serious power failure early one morning, it was the speedy reaction of colleagues that ensured operations were running from a back-up site within a few hours. When the power went down at 3.40am on Saturday 8 June, following a massive power outage at the local electrical substation, the site was temporarily out of action for only the second time in over a decade. A decision was made to activate the charity’s Business Continuity Plan, meaning Referral Centre operations and staff were transferred to the charity’s Disaster Recovery site in Bristol, ensuring continuity of service.

Mains power was restored to the National Support Centre late on the Tuesday afternoon and the Pontypool site was operational again by 6.30am on the Wednesday morning. Andy Hart, IT Manager, said: “Marie Curie’s IT team sent engineers to the site and also to the Disaster Recovery site in Bristol to conﬁgure machines, set up servers, fail-over emails and ensure the Patient Connect software that manages nurse rotas was not affected. All systems were fully operational and running from the Bristol site by 9am on Saturday morning.” The team continued to work through the day to conﬁgure the services and, once power returned to the Pontypool

site, engineers worked throughout the for the charity to occupy. Staff working night to restore normal service. Saturday travelled to Bristol to carry Centre Manager, Pontypool Nicola out their duties. Davies said: “It was a shock getting a “The commitment and ﬂexibility of the telephone call at 3.40am on Saturday staff was tremendous and everyone pulled morning informing me that the site together to ensure patient care was not had lost power. However, it was impacted over the four-day period,” also a great opportunity to test our Nicola said. Disaster Recovery Plan. “Myself and Sarah Seary Total time the “The Nursing Support Centre (Facilities and Services Manager) Pontypool site was was due to be operational by worked through Sunday night to 6.30am, which we were successful ensure rotas were adapted to reduce without power. in doing by activating our Business the impact on staff travelling to Continuity plan.” Bristol on the Monday. Staff rallied round and the Referral “Everyone was relieved to receive a Centre calls were handled via mobile call late Tuesday afternoon informing phones, supported by Referral Centre staff them that the Pontypool site would be until the Disaster Recovery site was ready operational on Wednesday.”

94hrs 50mins

6 People July 2013

Research

YOUNG PEOPLE: NEW FINDINGS

RESPECT: Ann Davison found that Marie Curie’s brand and services are trusted

Ranking high in survey on trust People have considerably higher levels of trust in Marie Curie healthcare providers than they do in generic healthcare providers, according to new research undertaken by the charity. The survey of six lots of 2,000 people revealed the high regard the general public has for the charity. Senior Insight Manager Ann Davison, said: “We already knew that people have a great deal of respect for nurses, but we had no data to show how people felt towards healthcare assistants or of how much trust the addition of the preﬁx ‘Marie Curie’ adds. “This research shows that people have an incredibly high opinion of all nursing staff that work under the Marie Curie label, and shows how strong and trusted our service and brand are.” In the survey by ComRes, respondents ranked, on a scale of 1 (not trust them at all) to 10 (trust them completely), how much trust they would have in a variety of healthcare professionals to provide care if a loved one needed end of life care at home. This included Marie Curie nurses and healthcare assistants, as well as generic nurses, healthcare assistants, senior healthcare assistants and nursing assistants.

Key survey facts

89%

Respondents over 65 who would trust a Marie Curie Nurse to provide end-of-life care to a loved one (rating 8-10). Only 50% of people said they would have the same level of trust in a regular nurse.

74%

Respondents who would trust a Marie Curie Nurse (rating 8-10) to provide this care.

70%

Approximate percentage of respondents who would trust a Marie Curie Healthcare Assistant to provide end-of-life care to a loved one (rating 8-10). This compares with three in 10 people who say they would have the same level of trust in a regular healthcare assistant.

More research is needed to accurately understand children and young people’s preferred place of death. These are the recommendations for future inquiry and policy after a systematic study of available literature by Marie Curie researchers. Although Marie Curie primarily looks after the palliative care needs of adults, the charity contributed to funding this research because children with lifelimiting illnesses are now living longer than ever before. This means many more are now making the transition from needing support for children to needing adult services. Service providers should be aware of the unique requirements of these patients to enable seamless care to continue once they reach 18 years of age. The study was undertaken by Dr Louise Jones, Head of the Marie Curie Palliative Care Research Unit at University College London, and her colleagues Myra Bluebond-Langer, Emma Beecham, Bridget Candy and Richard Langner.

ASSUMPTIONS Louise said: “We often hear that the majority of people, given the choice, would wish to die at home. There is the policy assumption that what we have learned from adults is applicable to a

child, a teenager or someone in early adulthood with a life-limiting or terminal illness. Our paper highlights that there is no evidence to support this supposition. “We found that hardly anyone is actually asking children or young people what they would like. Instead, they are asking their parents, which is acceptable if the child is very young. But as children get older, it is important to understand their views as well as their parents’, and even their siblings’, about where they would like to spend their ﬁnal days, and indeed where they would like to die.”

UNDERSTANDING CHILDREN’S NEEDS: Dr Louise Jones

DIFFICULTIES Louise’s study has revealed the difficulties of using existing research into adult and parents’ preferences to find out how young people should be cared for. “The research we have reviewed is biased towards white middle class families – findings which are not perhaps applicable to people from other groups. It also does not look at examples of situations where a teenager may already have their own children, or more complex or extended family situations, or what effect dying in the home would have on others in the family. We need to better understand such issues if we are to develop care that meets the real needs of young people and their families. ”

FOR MORE INFORMATION The research paper, Preferred place of death for children and young people with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions. A systematic review of the literature and recommendations for future inquiry and policy (Myra Bluebond-Langer, Emma Beecham, Bridget Candy, Richard Langner and Louise Jones), is available here: http://tinyurl.com/k8326l4

Study reveals factors that lead to quality palliative care Although specialist nursing support improves end of life care in care homes, factors such as stable care home management, palliative care champions and GP support are vital to ensure residents receive good quality, reliable palliative treatment. These are the ﬁndings from a study by Research Facilitator Dr Anne Finucane, Community Palliative Care Clinical Nurse Specialists Barbara Stevenson and Rhona Moyes, Medical Director Dr David Oxenham at the Marie Curie Hospice, Edinburgh, and Professor Scott Murray from the University of Edinburgh. The 20-month project aimed to see whether improvements in palliative care made by the Midlothian Gold Standards Framework project, an intervention in seven nursing homes in Scotland in 2007-2008, could be maintained using less support. The project involved Barbara and Rhona each spending one day per week providing support, workshops and training to the seven care homes. Anne explained: “Exploring new approaches to supporting good palliative care in care homes is important because 20% of people die in

care homes and some 33,000 people in help ensure that key processes remain in Scotland are currently being looked after place, stable care home management and in these settings.” key champions are vital to ensure that a The project results show increases in robust, reliable palliative care approach the number of care home residents becomes embedded within the culture of who died with an anticipatory care the care home.” plan in place; those with Do Not The Edinburgh hospice team Attempt Cardiopulmonary intends to build on the ﬁndings Resuscitation documentation and roll out a new project to 22 in place; and those who South Edinburgh care homes, The percentage were on the Liverpool Care of people who die funded by the Robertson Trust Pathway when they died. and Marie Curie Cancer Care. in care homes. There was a reduction in Anne said: “We are collecting inappropriate hospital deaths data throughout this project of frail and elderly residents with and hope the results will show the dementia. However, overall hospital extent to which a hospice-based model deaths increased. of care home support enables care home staff to improve the delivery of palliative care to their residents. This model – where GOOD SUPPORT specialist palliative care providers support Anne said: “The fact that overall staff in primary care settings to adopt hospital deaths increased suggests a palliative approach – is of particular that there are other factors that relevance in view of the need to better impact the end-of-life care a resident support people with non-malignant lifereceives. Our data showed that limiting disease, many of whom spend care homes where there had their last year of life in a care home.” been senior management changes had much higher FOR MORE INFORMATION levels of hospital deaths than more stable care The research paper, Improving end of life homes. We realised that care in nursing homes: implementation while good support from and evaluation of an intervention to palliative care nurse sustain quality of care is available at specialists and GPs can http://tinyurl.com/mn6wg2r

20%

EXPLORING NEW APPROACHES: Anne Finucane

July 2013 People 7

Volunteering

Three cheers for our volunteers Choruses of “Thank you” were heard across the UK as hospices, shops and offices celebrated national Volunteers’ Week. From barbecues and dinner parties to quizzes and discos, events organised by Marie Curie Cancer Care staff applauded everyone who gives up their time to support the charity. Throughout the UK, more than 20 million volunteers donate 100 million hours of time every week. Volunteers involved with Marie Curie often have had a personal connection to a hospice or the nursing service, and want to help others to beneﬁt from the same care when they need it. Director of Community Involvement Ruth Bravery joined staff in extending a million ‘thank yous’. “The effort staff at hospices, ofﬁces and shops have put in to these events speaks volumes for how much they appreciate our volunteers. We wouldn’t be able to offer many services if it wasn’t for volunteers’ support, or raise as much money as we do,” she said.

FOR MORE INFORMATION If you are thinking of volunteering and would like to know more, or would like to have a volunteer helping in your team, contact volunteering@mariecurie.org.uk

Staff at Bradford Hospice showed a real flair for celebrating. A ’70s themed event saw the hospice decorated with glitter balls and lava lamps, and staff dressed in bellbottoms and flower power outfits. “Our volunteers are amazing,” said nurse manager Jean Gordon. “No area of the hospice would be the same without them.”

During a barbecue at Hampstead Hospice, long service recognition was made – with loud applause from staff – to volunteers, notably Day Therapy Unit helpers Anne Schneider and Heidi Corsi (pictured left and right with Day Therapy Unit Sister Sarah Doherty), who have been involved with Marie Curie for 25 years.

Carers Week prepare carers for role Most of the 6,000 people who start a caring role in the UK every day are unprepared for the effect it will have on their lives, according to research conducted for this year’s Carers Week. In the survey of 2,000 carers, 80 per cent said they were surprised by the impact on their health, relationships and ﬁnances. During Carers Week – themed Prepared to Care? – Marie Curie ran events to celebrate carers’ work, raise awareness of the difﬁculties they face and campaign for better rights. Hospices held events such as advice and information sessions, and complementary therapy and creative courses, while Marie Curie’s Expert Voices group of current and past carers met MPs at two Parliamentary events, at Westminster and the Scottish Parliament, to discuss the practical and emotional support they need. Analysis from the recent census demonstrates that carers are two-and-ahalf times more likely to have bad or very bad health because of their caring role. The demands leave some so sick that they

end up in hospital themselves, leaving patients nearing the end of life without the support they need to make decisions about their preferred place of care. Gerry Mahaffey, Marie Curie’s Assistant Director of Carer Services and Patient and Family Engagement, said: “We need to identify and have conversations with carers dealing with end of life early in the decision-making process. Without mechanisms to identify them, or involvement from care professionals, we can’t assess their needs around advocacy, ﬁnancial beneﬁts, respite and health. The Parliamentary sessions helped highlight issues around provision of such support. “Marie Curie must continue to build on the momentum from Carers Week,” Gerry added, “by implementing its own strategy to support those caring for someone at the end of life and engaging our key partners the relevant parts of the organisation.” This year’s Carers Week was delivered by a coalition of seven voluntary sector organisations, including Marie Curie Cancer Care.

The Marie Curie Hospice, Newcastle held a swish Oscars-style celebration, complete with red-carpet entrance. With a quiz, a raffle and competitions, all volunteers received a prize donated by staff to express their thanks for their hard work and commitment. The Liverpool Marie Curie Helper Service celebrated Volunteers’ Week with quizzes, a buffet prepared by the hospice’s catering team and entertainment from volunteer Roy Barker, who had everyone singing along to folk classics.

Among the celebrations at Albert Embankment, volunteer Heather Burdett received a 10-year service award from CEO Dr Jane Collins.

Driving support vital to hospice When Basil Priest’s wife, Beryl, passed away from cancer in 1987, he immediately offered his help to Marie Curie, whose nurses at Holme Tower in Penarth, Wales, had looked after her so well. Two days a week and at weekends, Basil drives much-needed blood and drugs from Llandough Hospital and Velindre Cancer Centre to Marie Curie’s Cardiff and the Vale Hospice. He ensures the blood is iced and well packed and that all supporting paperwork is checked and signed. Basil said volunteering gives him a purpose in life. “Apart from my little jobs around the house, I wouldn’t be doing anything else. If you have had a bereavement and want to occupy your mind, look after people worse off than yourself. Whether you work in a hospice or a shop, everyone is contributing to the same cause.”

Basil Priest and Marie Curie Community Fundraiser Helen Griffiths

Radio show calls for less talk, more action Broadcasting during Carers Week from Marie Curie’s Albert Embankment office, Carers World Radio presented its latest programme in a series on young carers, featuring interviews with Marie Curie staff, carers and representatives from other public sector organisations. Presenter Tom Magner says his show asks when help will be made available. Care professionals and politicians talk about a whole family approach, so I was asking on the show: how do you achieve that? Carers don’t need to be told they’re doing a good job. Actions speak louder than words. “It doesn’t all need to be ﬁreﬁghting. Some councils anticipate problems, think laterally and put money in sensible places. “We’ve had fantastic support from Marie Curie. The charity is thinking clearly and is proactive – how I expect all charities to be.

“Out of Carers Week, I’d like to see young carers on the face of the Care Bill, for the Department of Health and Department of Education to collaborate and take more responsibility, and for campaigners to push harder – less talk, more action.” FOR MORE INFORMATION Hear the Carers Week show featuring Marie Curie staff at carersworldradio.com

PANEL TALK: Marie Curie’s Ruth Bravery with Lucie Heyes from the College of Social Work and Jenny Franks from the Children’s Society

8 People July 2013

News

VOLUNTEERS ATTEND PALACE RECEPTION

ROYAL SEAL OF APPROVAL: Tommy Haynes and Elliw Williams with Marie Curie’s Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Volunteering Award

Two volunteers have represented Marie Curie Cancer Care at a reception hosted by Her Majesty the Queen at Buckingham Palace. Tommy Haynes and Elliw Williams were invited to the event, held to celebrate the presentation of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Volunteering Award to 60 organisations, including Marie Curie. The two volunteers contributed to the charity’s nomination for the award by endorsing and supporting its work with accounts of their personal volunteering experiences.

“The reception was wonderful,” said Tommy. “It felt surreal. Volunteering suits unassuming people who aren’t used to the limelight – let alone being in the presence of royalty. I enjoyed it very much.” Elliw said: “There was a very positive feeling at the event – the Royals were in our midst, and I was surprised how much chatting there was. It was a oncein-a-lifetime experience, and a nice acknowledgement of our volunteering.” The pair were congratulated by Marie Curie Vice President Martyn Lewis CBE, who attended the event.

Elliw, who runs a Public Relations company in Canaerfon, helps the charity with Welsh language translations and also provides PR support. Tommy has been volunteering with the charity’s palliative care research programme in Belfast since 2009. He is the author of a number of papers, and is currently carrying out a Marie Curie-funded study on stress for his PhD. Around 9,000 people volunteer regularly for Marie Curie Cancer Care. A further 25,300 volunteers collect for the annual Great Daffodil Appeal.

Pensions – the latest on auto-enrolment Pensions Automatic Enrolment is under way

Many employees will experience for the first time pension contributions being taken from their pay. The charity hopes Pensions Automatic Enrolment started for that they see this as a valuable investment Marie Curie Cancer Care on 1 June 2013. for their futures. The charity has written to its employees The good news is that if you are not to notify them that, from 1 September already in a pension scheme, you don’t 2013, all eligible employees who are not have to wait for September. You can join currently in a pension scheme will have the charity’s pension scheme before to be automatically enrolled and then, by contacting the Pensions contributions will be paid to the new and Remunerations Department Scottish Widows pension scheme Predicted number of who will be more than happy set up earlier this year. Eligible people over the age to help. employees are those between the of 65 in the UK by ages of 22 and State Pension age 2050, almost double earning more than £9,440 a year. How employees benefit More than 3,000 letters were A pension is a great way to build today’s figure of issued, and this generated questions up money for your retirement, as 10 million. from around 1.5% of recipients. both Marie Curie Cancer Care and Automatic enrolment aims to help millions the taxman add to the money that is of people build up a pension, to help them paid by you. For example, if an employee improve their standard of living when they pays 80p into the pension scheme, the retire. Upon retirement, this money will be taxman adds 20p and Marie Curie Cancer paid in addition to the state pension which Care adds £1. There are maximum limits for new savers will be approximately on the amount that employees and the £7,000 per year where national insurance charity will pay, but where else can you contributions have been paid for 35 years. save 80p and turn it into £2 immediately?

19 million

How will automatic enrolment affect employees’ September pay? Under automatic enrolment, employees make no choices. The table below provides example costs for two different salary levels. Salary

Monthly cost – 1 August 2013 to September 2017 (your 1% contribution, Marie Curie’s 1% contribution)

Monthly cost – 1 October 2017 to September 2018 (your 3% contribution, Marie Curie’s 2% contribution)

Monthly cost – 1 October 2018 onwards (your 5% contribution, Marie Curie’s 3% contribution)

£12,000 per year

You Tax office Marie Curie

£8 £2 £10

You Tax office Marie Curie

£24 £6 £20

You Tax office Marie Curie

£40 £10 £3

£22,000 per year

You Tax office Marie Curie

£14.66 £3.67 £18.33

You Tax office Marie Curie

£44 £11 £36.67

You Tax office Marie Curie

£73.33 £18.34 £55

How do employees join the pension scheme? Employees don’t have to do anything to join the scheme as the charity will automatically enrol them from September 2013 at the starting contribution rates, shown in the table below. Timing

Marie Curie contribution

Your contribution

Government’s contribution

September 2013 to September 2017

0.8%

0.2%

October 2018 to September 2018

2.4%

0.6%

October 2018 onwards

7.5%

It literally pays for you to contribute. For many, retirement may seem a long way off. But take it from people who are retiring today – it will come round much faster than expected and most retirees wish they had started to put money aside earlier.

The money paid each month is invested in a default investment fund selected by the charity’s pension advisers. After the ﬁrst contribution is paid, employees can choose to stay in the default investment option or make their own choices. As most employees do not want to be actively involved with picking investments and keeping a close eye on what’s happening in the market, the default fund has been carefully selected with a relatively low-risk proﬁle.

on their retirement plans. If employees can put a bit more aside much earlier in life, then this will go a long way to helping secure a better pension. The online portal includes the following useful ﬁnancial tools: ● Pension Planner: This allows employees to see what their projected pension is likely to be but also enables them to work out how much they need to pay into their pension to get the income they want. ● Investment Decision Tool: This enables employees that want to make their own choices assess their attitude to investment risk and map this to a prebuilt investment portfolio. ● Indulgeometer: A simple and effective tool to establish how, with a bit of careful budgeting, we can all save money by cutting back slightly.

Online help

Pension reminders and further help

One important aspect of the charity’s pension scheme with Scottish Widows is that employees can look at their pension details online and keep in control of their retirement planning. Financial education is an important part of the pension process, and all employees should make time to understand the impact that the choice they make will have

Marie Curie will write to employees again during August to remind them that pension contributions are going to start and its Pensions and Remuneration Team are here to help. They understand that, although online services provide important information quickly, it is comforting to be able to talk things through to make sure everything is fully understood.

How does the money paid into the pension scheme accumulate?

July 2013 People 9

Feature MY STORY

“Sometimes I enjoy life more now”

NEWS IN BRIEF

NEW PATRONS Marie Curie has three new Patrons: Sharman Birtles JP DL for Greater Manchester, Georgina Hunter Gordon for Essex and Nella Probert for Suffolk. Sharman is the charity’s ﬁrst Patron in Manchester, while Georgina and Nella take over from Philippa Cannon and Sir Edward Greenwell respectively. Patrons are senior volunteers and ambassadors for Marie Curie who assist with fundraising and raising awareness. The charity particularly needs more Patrons in London and the home counties – email ﬁona.leishman@mariecurie.org.uk if you have any suggestions.

Alison Leary, a day patient at the Marie Curie Hospice, Hampstead, talks about her hopes and fears. I was quite scared about being introduced to a hospice because of the connotation of death and dying. I’d never seen one before so I didn’t know what to expect. “Dr Adrian Tookman, the Hospice Clinical Director, is reassuring and very good at explaining things. Sometimes, the time spent with a hospital consultant is very short, so it’s good to have Adrian to explain what everything means and for me to talk about my anxieties. “At the moment I’m having a course of hypnotherapy once a week, which is helping me to deal with anxiety, and I’ve learned techniques to help with pain relief. That’s been really excellent. I’ve also been having massages. “I see a counsellor at the hospice – it’s someone I really like. It may sound like a weird thing to say but I actually enjoy going. She cheers me up and has helped me with things that I’ve put off for ages, like writing a will. I haven’t been good about motivating myself to do it and when I mention it to my family they feel awkward about it. So she’s arranged for someone to meet me at the hospice so I can sort it all out, which is really helpful.

CHARMING STAFF “I started chemo again in December, which I’ve just finished, and unfortunately it didn’t work, so I’ve just started some hormone therapy. I’ll know in a month or so if that’s having any effect. But I feel quite well and I genuinely do find it very helpful to have somewhere like Marie Curie to go to. It’s a happy place. All the staff are absolutely charming and you get to meet lots of other people there who also go regularly. “I had my first blood transfusion last year and had to stay the night. I was really pleased to be there because I was nervous and didn’t know what to expect. I could have visitors at any time, I was in my own room and it just wasn’t like being in a hospital where no one with a terminal illness really wants to be. The hospice staff know my history, what medication I’ve had, what works etcetera. Hospital staff just aren’t trained in palliative care – it’s all very general there. “I do feel lucky that I am well supported.

GARDENING VOLUNTEERS Green-ﬁngered staff from mobile network operator EE have spent a day tidying gardens at the Marie Curie Hospice, Newcastle – painting furniture, tending to plants and clearing the pond.

W WELL SUPPORTED: S Alison Leary A feels lucky fe to have her ffriends, family aand Marie Curie nearby C

My GP is close by, I have a palliative care nurse, I attend the University College Hospital and, of course, I have Marie Curie. I also have some really good friends and I’m near my family. “It’s disappointing that some friends have fallen off the radar. My one piece of advice to anyone who knows someone with a terminal illness would be to just stay in touch.

FRANK TALKING “I can talk about my illness with my friends – I’m very frank. But I can sense when someone is uncomfortable so I won’t go into too much detail in that case. My core group of friends know when I have hospital appointments and treatments and I often have a friend to come with me. “Talking about dying tends to make people feel uncomfortable so I don’t talk about that much. I have friends who

My advice to anyone who knows someone with a terminal illness? Just stay in touch.

have had cancer, so they understand a bit more. But also, I don’t want to bore people rigid because it’s been going on for seven years now! “I’ve had discussions with Adrian and my palliative care nurse about where I’d like to die and my general feeling is that I’d like to be at home. But if that’s not possible then I’d like to be in the hospice. I’d like to avoid hospital by any means. “I’ve asked Adrian what might happen if there’s no room in the hospice, but he’s reassured me that when the time comes, they will do everything possible to get me where I want to be. We’ve also talked about managing pain and I’ve been told there are lots of things that they can do to avoid me being in pain, which is a great comfort. “I’m not really a ‘bucket list’ sort of person, mainly because I’ve been fortunate enough to travel a lot and had a varied life. I like to spend time with the people I like and to do things that I enjoy. “In the beginning, when I was ﬁrst diagnosed, I was frightened about what it all meant. But you have to make sense of your life. For some people that means making a bucket list, but for me, I just thought, ‘I have to live.’ “I feel a bit sillier now – I don’t care what people think of me any more. For example, I’ve just had my hair done after it started growing back. I’ve always had it brown, but my hairdresser suggested I go blonde, so I said ‘oh ok then’ and I’ve just come home blonde. “I enjoy life. In a way, sometimes I enjoy life more now. There are things that I’d like to do, like go to Paris this summer as I haven’t been in a long time. But really, I’d just like to spend quality time with nice people.”

AWARD FOR MAUREEN Maureen Nix, Treasurerr of the Warminster & District Fundraising Group, has won the award of Community Hero from the Wiltshire Times. Community Fundraiser Lucy Stockall said: “Maureen has been fantastic ntastic in her role as Treasurer and is a real doer. The award was for the work that she does for charities in the area and we are very proud of her.” TV TIMES All patients at the Marie Curie Hospice, Liverpool will now have access to their own televisions. Some 30 TVs were installed at the hospice. The TVs were purchased through restricted donations the hospice received. CHARLIE IS NEW CIO Charlie Hooper, Marie Curie Cancer Care’s new Chief Information Officer, has started work for the charity. Charlie joined from Deloitte, the accounting and consulting company, where he ran the Public Sector and Charities Data Analytics team. Full report next issue. PSSST! POSTS Pssst! – Marie Curie’s internal newsfeed – has just celebrated another birthday. Since launching on the intranet back in 2008, more than 2,300 posts have been made. Pssst! is open to all staff in Marie Curie to share news and intelligence.

10 People July 2013

Feature

ROYAL PATRON OPENS OUR NEW HOSPICE His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales officially opened the new £20million Marie Curie Hospice, West Midlands in Solihull.

The Prince – who is Marie Curie’s Royal Patron – was greeted by the LordLieutenant for the West Midlands Mr Paul Sabapathy CBE. Marie Curie Chairman John Varley introduced Chief Executive Dr Jane Collins, Hospice Manager Liz Cottier and Appeal Chairman Chris Rawstron to His Royal Highness. The Prince visited the hospice day services area, spending time chatting with patients about art. He met in-patients, and spent time touring the extensive grounds of the hospice and talking to the volunteer gardening team. He also met pupils and teachers from the local Solihull School, all of whom have a personal family connection to Marie Curie. The Prince gave a speech praising the work of volunteers, staff, fundraisers and supporters and unveiled a plaque commemorating the ofﬁcial opening of the hospice. The weather throughout the visit was cloudy, with sunny spells. The Prince was joined by long-term Marie Curie supporters girl group, The Saturdays, who got behind the building of the new hospice since laying the ﬁrst brick two years ago. Marie Curie Chief Executive Dr Jane

HRH The Prince of Wales with The Saturdays

Serving more patients The new Marie Curie Hospice, West Midlands allows staff to support more patients and their families and carers than the former Marie Curie Hospice, Solihull. Outpatient services enable more patients to remain at home with the best possible quality of life. The day therapy unit supports twice as many patients, offering clinical support, rehabilitation, emotional support, practical advice and complementary therapies. The hospice is also a base for the Marie Curie Nursing Service for the whole of the West Midlands.

Collins said: “We are honoured that His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales and The Saturdays were able to attend today and open our new hospice and meet our staff, volunteers and patients. We are grateful to everyone who has been involved in raising the funds to build this fantastic new hospice which

will allow us to care for more patients across the West Midlands.” Rochelle Humes from The Saturdays attended for her ﬁrst ofﬁcial public appearance since the birth of her daughter. She said: “It is such an honour to be part of such a special day and amazing to see how fantastic the hospice looks and we are all very proud to be ambassadors for Marie Curie.” Marie Curie Cancer Care recently announced that its BIG Build Appeal to fund and equip the hospice had reached its £7 million fundraising target. The appeal, which ran for two years, has seen star names such as Torvill and Dean, The Saturdays, Clive Anderson, Bill Oddie, Sir Clive Woodward and Digby, Lord Jones of Birmingham all kindly lending their support. The local community has also played a vital role with fundraising activities ranging from brave men waxing their hairy legs to long distance bike rides, vintage swims, medieval banquets and quiz teams battling it out at the annual Birmingham Brain Game.

140,000 Man-hours taken to construct the new Marie Curie Hospice, West Midlands.

Number of en suite bedrooms – 40 per cent more than the previous Marie Curie Hospice, Solihull.

2,500

Number of extra nights of care now available every year at the new hospice.

Prince Charles meets Chef Kevin Jones and hospice team members

July 2013 People 11

Feature

Mrs Gurbaksh Dhillon chats with the Royal guest

Appeal Patron Sir Adrian Cadbury DL meets HRH The Prince of Wales

Patient Rod MacDonald and HRH The Prince of Wales talk in the potting area

12 People July 2013

Food for thought Desert island essentials

How do I… recruit a volunteer? Linsey Winter, National Volunteering Manager (South), provides a simple three-step guide to recruiting a Marie Curie Volunteer.

Imagine you’re marooned on a desert island. What items would you want with you? What song, book or ﬁlm couldn’t you live without? We asked Suzana Drummond, Governance Lead in Caring Services, for three things she couldn’t live without.

A SONG

Hard

CHOP TO IT: Graham White

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1 Stir fry vegetables just before serving. Add pak choi and fresh coriander. 3 Scatter over ﬁnished chicken and sauce.

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METHOD

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1 packet baby corn 1 yellow pepper 1 sliced red onion 3/4 spring onions 2 pak choi Handful of mange tout/ green beans Fresh coriander Seasoning

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STIR-FRIED VEGETABLES INGREDIENTS

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1 Split and smash ends of lemon grass. 2 Roughly chop onions,

3 chicken supremes, skinless 30g peeled ginger ½ bunch coriander 2 cloves garlic Zest and ﬂesh of 1 lime 1tsp turmeric 1tsp cumin

1 Place chicken in container with splash of oil and remaining ingredients and marinade for 24 hours. Seal off in a pan and ﬁnish in oven at a minimum of 79oC. 2 Slice breast into 5/6 slices. 3 Cover with the sauce.

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METHOD

CHICKEN INGREDIENTS

METHOD

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2 white onions, peeled 2 sticks lemongrass 1 large red/green chilli 40g peeled fresh ginger 4 spring onions 1 bunch fresh coriander 4 cloves garlic, peeled 1 lime leaf 1 tin coconut milk 300ml double cream 30g chicken bouillon ½tsp pepper ½tsp salt 1tsp turmeric 1tsp cumin/mild curry powder 1tsp ground coriander 2/3tbsp sugar Corn ﬂour Oil 300ml water

chillies, ginger, spring onions, coriander and garlic. 3 Fry all these (adding lemongrass and lime leaves) in oil. When onions soften, add salt and pepper, turmeric, cumin, coriander and sugar. 4 Stir in chicken bouillon and coconut milk and bring to boil. 5 Once boiled, add cream and water and simmer for one hour. 6 Using corn ﬂour, thicken if needed. 7 Blend broth with stick blender until smooth. 8 Pass through ﬁne sieve. 9 Adjust consistency using more cream/water. For richer colour, blend in more fresh coriander.

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I learned to cook at college. I spent years as a freelance chef before working with Chilli Pepper Oxford (now Jamie’s Fabulous Feasts). Our most challenging events were in strange places; once we set up a kitchen in Warwick Castle’s chapel. This recipe’s fresh ﬂavour and creamy texture suits our patients’ tastes.

SAUCE INGREDIENTS

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Serves 4

Easy

Graham White, Head Chef at the Marie Curie Hospice, Cardiff and the Vale.

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Recipe of the month... Thai Green Curry

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Do you have an idea for the Food for thought page – a recipe or advice column? Perhaps you would like to feature in our Desert island essentials section? Write to us at people@mariecurie.org.uk

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I’d have to take my iPod. I don’t think I could live without music – the right song can change your mood altogether.

I’d bring the Count Of Monte Cristo – it’s the best book ever. I’m not going to spoil it, but it’s full of intrigue, honour and revenge. It’s a long read but is absolutely worth it. When I was reading it on my way home from work, I missed my bus stop on two occasions because I was so engrossed and couldn’t put it down. And actually, the book could double up as a pillow too…

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A LUXURY ITEM

A BOOK

Below are the answers to the Suduko puzzles on page 19.

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WRITE TO US

Once you have selected someone for your role, the Volunteer Centre will send them a Welcome Pack and complete all recruitment checks, such as taking up two references. When all essential checks have been completed, you will receive a clearance email and they will be ready to start. It’s a good idea to leave around three months from planning the role to the volunteer starting.

Suduko answers

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The Volunteer Centre will forward you a volunteer registration form for anyone interested in the role. If you are happy that the individual meets the role’s requirements, you need to arrange a selection conversation with them, ideally face to face.

STEP THREE – COMPLETE THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS

So that would be pretty vital if you were stuck on your own.

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STEP TWO – SELECT THE RIGHT PERSON

RECRUITMENT EXPERT: Linsey Winter

MUSIC LOVER: Suzana Drummond, possibly planning her desert island playlist

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Before you start to recruit a volunteer, you need a volunteer role description. You may already have one which you just need to update. If it’s a new role, contact your National Volunteering Manager who can support you in writing this. The Volunteer Centre will advertise your opportunity on our website and on selected national volunteering websites.

About ﬁve years ago, my neighbours would play a piece of music very loudly, very often. Far from ﬁnding it irritating I would actually turn down my own music to listen to it. I asked them what it was, but they couldn’t work out which music I was referring to, so I said I’d pop over the next time I heard it. A few days later, there it was again! So I knocked on my neighbour’s door. When they answered I said, “This is the music I love! What is it?” My neighbour explained they were praying and the music was a mantra. A couple of days later he came over with a copy on CD for me. It’s called Om Namah Shivaya and it really is the most amazing music ever.

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STEP ONE – GET THE ROLE RIGHT

July 2013 People 13

Our team

A LOOK AT DAY THERAPY Passionate about palliative care, Jill Templeman strives to give patients quality of life and the skills and support they need to manage their illnesses. Jill is Day Therapy Manager at Marie Curie’s Cardiff and the Vale Hospice, where she ﬁrst started working in 1985. She and her team offer essential emotional, psychological and creative support to patients. In the past decade, there has been a clear movement in how care staff view patients – from thinking purely in terms of their physical situation to looking holistically at all their needs. The Marie Curie Hospice, Cardiff and the Vale has always had a day unit, but it was once nurse-led, with little complementary therapy. Now, my Day Therapy team focuses on issues such as anxiety and fatigue management and offering emotional, psychological and spiritual support. There’s a lot of group work – from reminiscing about the past to yoga, hypnotherapy and more creative activities. If a person is chronically fatigued, having an occupational therapist guide them through exercises they can do at home makes a huge difference to their lives. We match the patient with their needs. We don’t slot them into services that aren’t suitable for them. An important part of our role is listening. Our focus groups tell us they want education, emotional help and to have fun. We introduced activities such as cupcake decorating, painting and music days – one of our social workers is in a choir and has led singing sessions. We even had a Bollywood dancer perform. The patients take ownership of the activity programme. Part of our role is to give them independence.

LIFE JOURNEY In one of our most successful projects, patients mapped out their life journeys

PHYSICAL SUPPORT: Massages and simple exercises make a huge difference to wellbeing

– from birth, with photos of themselves as babies, through their first school, first partner, first car, holidays and marriage to the present day. It was interesting to see the experiences of different age groups. Some patients are in their 40s, while others in their 80s are able to talk about serving in the war. It was poignant. We saw patients as young people with careers and we found out who they really are – not just a person who is ill. We had an exhibition of their timelines. It enabled patients to talk about death and what their families mean to them. It validated their lives.

CREATIVE OUTLET: From singing to cupcake decorating, patients learn a variety of new skills

One of my team suggested gearing our services more to younger patients. We have many between 18 and 40, who dip in and dip out of sessions, and we’re inviting a group in for lunch to ﬁnd out what they want and how we can extend our activities to their families.

DYNAMIC TEAM

Patients need the psychological ﬁx. They want to interact with people who truly empathise with them. JILL TEMPLEMAN

My team is dynamic. We’re not medics, but we each bring professional values. The team is made up of social workers, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, coordinators and a chaplain. We meet regularly to learn from each other and hear colleagues’ perspectives. As manager, I try to empower them to bring their life skills to the table and try new ideas. I don’t want to stiﬂe people’s creativity. Without volunteering support, we wouldn’t have the service. Transport to the hospice, for instance, is a huge issue for some of our patients, so our drivers are essential. Volunteers also give us extra capacity to offer our services to carers, who sometimes need complementary therapy or just someone to talk to.

PATIENT BENEFITS

LIFE JOURNEYS: Patients plotted personal timelines from their births to the present day

Patients appreciate they need to have their physical bodies mended, but they need the psychological ﬁx. It gives them conﬁdence – a reason to get up in the morning, to put on nice clothes. We see a difference in their appearance. They want to support each other. Patients don’t always want to talk to

Proﬁle: Jill Templeman Jill Templeman joined Marie Curie Cancer Care in 1985, when Cardiff and the Vale Hospice opened as Holme Tower Hospice. She worked as an auxiliary nursing assistant for 12 years, before leaving to complete a social work degree. She had various roles in social services before returning to the hospice in 2001 to set up and develop rehabilitation and quality of life services. Why Marie Curie? “I think the staff and nurses here have an inspiring outlook – seeing patients as people and not just as someone with cancer,” said Jill. Jill’s Day Therapy team comprises four social workers, two full time and two job share; two occupational therapists; two physiotherapists; two coordinators; a chaplain; and about 20 volunteers, including drivers and complementary therapists.

family and friends about their anxieties. They need to interact with people who truly empathise with their situation, which is why day therapy is vital. I’m always surprised by how groups gel and share intimate fears. When someone is coming to the end of their life, everything is stripped away. There’s a realness and a warmth about the person.” FOR MORE INFORMATION For information about Jill’s team and the services they offer, contact Jill on Jill.Templeman@mariecurie.org.uk

14 People July 2013

Feature VIEWPOINT

Making social al care work CHARMING CROFT HALL: Lesley Brennan, Jean Morley and Caitlin Parker

By Policy and Public Affairs Manager Scott Sinclair Social care services – such as help with washing, dressing, preparing food and other non-medical aspects of care – play a critical role in keeping terminally ill people out of hospital. Research by the Nuffield Trust has shown that people who get local authority-funded social care are far less likely to use hospital care than people without social care support. Unfortunately, in England, social care can be very difﬁcult to access. Unlike NHS care, it isn’t free to everyone. So before a local authority can give you care, it will assess your means to pay for care and also consider how severe your care needs are. Different local authorities set different levels of eligibility, so while you can be eligible for care in one local authority, you might not be in others. The Care Bill, which is currently being debated in the House of Lords, aims to simplify the social care system. The Bill will: ● set a standard level of eligibility for care across England, so that if you are eligible for care you should remain so no matter where you go in the county ● raise the level of the means test, so more people should qualify for free care ● put a cap on the amount of money you have to contribute to your own care, meaning that people should spend less on care during their lifetimes Many of the Bill’s provisions should prove beneﬁcial to terminally ill people and their carers. There is a duty on local authorities to provide information and support to everyone about the range of care services on offer in the area where they live. This should help carers in particular, who often struggle to navigate the various services available on behalf of their loved ones. The Bill also says that the NHS must tell a local authority if it is discharging someone from hospital who needs social care. For every day that the NHS is unable to discharge someone because there is no social care support available, it can charge the local authority the cost of keeping that person in hospital. This should help ensure more terminally ill people get good care and support at home or in a care home once they leave hospital and reduce their chances of going back into hospital, potentially lowering the number of people who die in hospital each year. The Bill doesn’t address the speed at which the system moves, and we know this can be a problem for terminally ill people – waiting 10-30 days for care when you are terminally ill and time is precious is simply unacceptable. However, Peers are currently scrutinising the Bill and will be considering ways that it can be improved before it is debated by MPs and then becomes law.

HERBACEOUS HACKNEY: Nikki Biggs, Joe Swift and Claire Hogan at 17a Navarino Road, Hackney, London SCENIC SURREY: Nurse Eileen Derricutt, Community Fundraiser Surrey Yvonne Orr, and Farnham NGS garden owners Mr and Mrs Wingent

National Gardens Weekend is blooming marvellous Marie Curie Cancer Care’s biggest supporter, the National Gardens Scheme (NGS), ran a new event to raise money for the charities it funds. The National Gardens Weekend involved 800 gardens opening to the public. To help publicise the weekend, Marie Curie Nurses, colleagues and volunteers were photographed in gardens that open for the NGS and in Marie Curie Hospice gardens. TV and radio presenter Anneka Rice re-lived her Treasure Hunt days, complete with jumpsuit and helicopter, visiting ﬁve gardens in Surrey, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. In Oxfordshire, she met Marie Curie Chief Executive Dr Jane Collins. Jane said: “Here at Marie Curie we understand the importance and impact that gardens have on people’s lives. Our nurses work in people’s homes and have observed how much joy gardens can give people in their last days. “If patients are keen gardeners they

CAPTIVATING CARDIFF: Nurse Debbie Malaney Malaney, NGS garden owner Sarah Saunders-Davies, and Mayor of Romsey Mark Cooper

often ask to be brought out to their gardens, or to be positioned in bed so that they can look at them. Patients at our nine hospices also ﬁnd comfort in the gardens, which we make an effort to keep in top condition. “We have therefore always been proud to be a partner of the NGS, a scheme that brings the peace and happiness of beautiful gardens to the public. Money raised by the scheme and by National Gardens Weekend will help our nurses provide more of the hands-on support that they are known for.” SPECIAL OFFER Every year, the National Gardens Scheme publishes The Yellow Book, the guide to all the gardens open under the scheme. The 2013 edition is available to supporters of Marie Curie at a special price of £5 (RRP £9.99). To get your copy of The Yellow Book, follow the link ngs.org.uk and enter the Marie Curie code MCPYB13.

WO WONDERFUL WASHINGTON: Marie Curie Nurse Katie Searles at Washington Old Hall garden, Tyne and Wear

About: Marie Curie and the National Gardens Scheme Since its creation in 1927, the National Gardens Scheme (NGS) has raised money for nursing and gardening charities by opening more than 3,800 private gardens of character from March to October each year and donating the entrance fee to charity. The NGS has supported Marie Curie with annual donations since 1996, and is the charity’s biggest-ever single donor. The 2013 donation takes the total past £6 million. In recognition, in 2013 a number of Marie Curie nurses will wear jackets carrying the message ‘Supported by the National Gardens Scheme’. Other charities supported by the NGS include Crossroads, Macmillan Cancer Support and the National Trust. For more information, visit ngs.org.uk.

BL LOOMING BRISTOL: Marie Curie Nurse BLOOMING Catherine Le Roy and County Organiser Su Mills in Coombe Dingle, Bristol

July 2013 People 15

Feature

SHADOWING DR JANE COLLINS Divisional General Manager for Scotland Nichola Summers spent a day shadowing Marie Curie’s Chief Executive Dr Jane Collins. Nichola spoke to Marie Curie People about the experience. I always thought it would be fascinating and inspiring to shadow Jane and it certainly was. In a relatively short time, she has become well versed in all aspects of our organisation, learned about the partners we work with, formed a view on how the charity should be progressing, and knows how to get the best from everyone she works with. If anyone thinks that being a CEO of a charity involves a little light networking with VIPs, you couldn’t be more wrong. One of the many things which interested me about shadowing Jane was her previous background as a Consultant Paediatric Neurologist at Great Ormond Street Hospital. Consultants are trained to know a huge amount about their own specialism, but they do not necessarily have the same depth of knowledge about other specialties. The job of a CEO is almost the polar opposite, requiring a huge breadth of knowledge, rather than extreme detail in any one area. When I asked Jane about the shift from Consultant to CEO, she told me that she hadn’t really found it difﬁcult, and that she had made the change to CEO in a couple of steps. She initially became a Clinical Director at GOSH, then Medical

Jane is able to function at both the ‘helicopter’ CEO level and the Consultant ‘microscopic’ level.

Director, before becoming CEO. This gave her the chance to take on more of a management role over time. Jane is able to function at both the ‘helicopter’ CEO level and the Consultant ‘microscopic’ level. My impression is that Jane will examine the detail when she needs to in order to ensure quality in any area of the charity, but can equally maintain the overview the rest of the time. Effectively, we get the best of both worlds. A day with Jane spanned so many different departments, initiatives, and potential partners. She is incredibly focused, manages her time well and runs a tight diary. Supported by her equally focused PA, Susan Morton, she accomplishes a tremendous amount each day, meeting with various agencies, internal teams and associations. She appears to do a lot of reading outside of work, as her knowledge on the topics we were meeting about during the day was obvious. I’d like to know how she does it, because she is able to source what she needs to know and hones in on the key issues and insights. I enjoyed the day and would encourage other colleagues to identify people within Marie Curie that they would like to shadow, and then ask them. I was really lucky to get a tiny insight into the world of our CEO, and am grateful to Jane for being so open to my request. I’ve also picked up a few things I want to incorporate into my own way of working.”

Nichola’s top tips from time spent with Dr Jane Collins ● Don’t lose sight of the big picture: the continuing success of Marie Curie requires us to be aware of changes in the world outside, in areas such as ﬁnance, health and social care, politics, and the third sector generally. ● Always look for the next improvement: do not allow yourself to be complacent about what we do well. Everything can be improved. ● Give your full attention to the person in front of you: you are more likely to ask the right questions and achieve the objective for the meeting if you are not thinking about the next thing you have to do. ● Guard your time and maintain focus: keep meetings to time; delegate effectively; and do not allow interruptions to steal your time.

INSIGHT: Nichola Summers (right) relished the opportunity to ﬁnd out more about CEO Dr Jane Collins’ work

A day in the life of Dr Jane Collins Finalising the content for the Leadership Summit for the senior leadership team with Nicky Watson Meeting with Head of Analytics Dr Michael Cooke, Medical Adviser Dr Teresa Tate and Assistant Director of Quality Assurance Ruth Liley to consider clinical key performance indicators, and patient outcome measures Meeting with Marianne Fallon from KPMG to discuss external audit Teleconference on the Marie Curie Hospice Strategy Travel to Sutton for meeting Meeting with Bridget Warr, UK Home Care Association Ltd. Return travel to 89 Albert Embankment (plus a very quick sandwich) Meeting with Chris Hopson, Chief Executive of the Foundation Trust Network, to discuss how best to engage with Foundation Trusts Meeting with Director of Communications Chris Dainty to discuss the Marie Curie brand

Hospices commended for five-star health and safety Two Marie Curie Hospices received a five-star pass mark in a recent health and safety audit. Both the Marie Curie Hospice, Newcastle and the Marie Curie Hospice, Glasgow passed the external inspection with flying colours. Claire Guise, Health and Safety Manager, said: “Not only does this mean these hospices are complying with the law, the necessary standards and best practice, but they are also meeting our policy requirements. This achievement is testament to the leadership of the Facilities Managers at each hospice and also the collective efforts of their teams and the willingness to get it right.” Gill White, Facilities Manager at the Marie Curie Hospice, Newcastle said: “We achieved these results through a concerted team effort. We have a very

engaged and responsive Environment and Risks Committee, and health and safety champions responsible for different aspects, which ensure we keep on top of any issues.” Marie Curie’s other hospices received either a fouror three-star rating. The Marie Curie Shop in Byker, Newcastle also received five-star certification. Every year, the charity undertakes a health and safety review of all its hospices as well as a representative shop and an office, which is conducted by an external consultant. During the audit, a variety of health and safety criteria are measured including fire safety, workplace safety, manual handling and how consultation and communication about health and safety issues is carried out.

FIVE STAR: The Marie Curie Hospice, Newcastle passed its external health and safety inspection with ﬂying colours

16 People July 2013

Celebration

RECORD NUMBER REMEMBER US target supporters. We have also changed A record number of people decided to our integrated direct marketing approach, remember Marie Curie Cancer Care in their which included our ﬁrst ever telemarketing Wills last year, with pledges totalling some campaign that reached some 5,000 £26.4 million in future income. supporters. In addition, we decided The number of people pledging to increase the number of Gifts to support the charity in 2012for the Future events we run. 2013 grew to 1,241, up “But we couldn’t have from a previous high of Income from increased the number of 749 in 2010-2011. This pledged gifts legacy pledges without rise in legacy-giving is due in 2012-13. help from the Community to several factors. Fundraisers and all our staff in Dan Carter, Individual Giving the regions. The decision to leave Manager, said: “We have worked a legacy comes at the end of someone’s more closely with our six regional Legacy journey supporting the charity. It is the Advisors to support them and help them result of building up direct experience of the work our nurses do and a strong PROACTIVE: Individual Giving Fundraiser (Legacies) personal relationship with people who Kate McGrath with the new Marie Curie legacies represent the charity.” booklet from The Rotary Club of Esk Valley

£26.4m

Award for Dalkeith Fundraising Group The Marie Curie Cancer Care Dalkeith Fundraising Group has won an award from the Volunteer Centre Midlothian, in recognition of the £25,000 it’s raised for the charity since forming in November 2011. The group was shortlisted for the Organisational Support Award, which recognises volunteers who make a contribution to fundraising and supporting charities, and pipped three other groups to first place. Fundraisers Christine Williamson, who leads the group’s events, and Lynne Herbert, who is responsible for publicity and legacy-giving within the group, attended the award ceremony at Newbattle Abbey College in Dalkeith. Lynne said: “It was great to receive such recognition for all of our hard work and a good excuse to get semi-dressed up and celebrate. We are sharing custody of the award so we can each show it off to our friends, families and supporters. Christine had the first go at babysitting it. It’s a proper big glass shiny thing with our group’s name engraved on it.” Arlene Main, Community Fundraiser, at the Marie Curie Hospice, Edinburgh, said: “The group is terrific. They’ve done more than just raise money: they’ve raised awareness of Marie Curie. They’ve also encouraged others to fundraise and volunteer and really made Marie Curie part of their community. I am extremely proud of them.”

CELEBRATION (left to right): Christine Williamson Williamson, Lynne Herbert with Colin Wilson from The Rotary Club of Esk Valley, which sponsored the award

Marie Curie decided to change its strategy to legacy-giving last year following supporter research. Kate McGrath, Individual Giving Fundraiser, said: “The feedback showed that supporters are happy to talk about leaving the charity a gift in their Wills. They want to be approached proactively and positively by Marie Curie and to be able to support the charity in this way. They want to know how their gifts will help the charity in future.” On top of this success, the Legacy Administration team exceeded its ﬁnancial targets for 2012-13 by £1 million, at £22.7 million. This equates to almost a third of the charity’s voluntary income.

LONG SERVICE AWARD

Two decades of volunteering A volunteer at the Marie Curie Shop in Corstorphine, received an award during Volunteers’ Week to recognise 20 years of service to the charity. Winifred ‘Winnie’ Allan, 93, has been helping out since the shop ﬁrst opened in the Edinburgh neighbourhood in 1993. Winnie said: “I started 20 years ago at the wee shop along the road when it ﬁrst opened, working behind the counter on the tills. It’s really good for me to come in here every Monday. I open the bags, steam the clothes and put price stickers on goods.” Winnie also keeps busy delivering church magazines and organising the ‘Heather’ Bowling League, which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. KEEPING BUSY: Winifred Allan with her long service award

Climbing the social media chart Marie Curie Cancer Care came 34th out of the top 100 brands in social media and fourth out of the 15 other charities also nominated for inclusion in this year’s Social Brands 100 report. The report is a ranking that looks at how effectively and creatively brands are at using social media such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. Stuart Witts, Social Media Manager, said: “Although it’s hard to accurately measure social media, appearing in this ranking shows that what we are doing clearly works. Our social media strategy is raising the proﬁle of the charity with a different audience and shows we’re a modern, up-to-date brand and organisation that’s caught people’s attention.” Last year, the charity ranked 41st overall and jumped up several places within the charity sector. The ranking is based on such factors as the growth

of fans, response rate and times, video views, average post engagement rates and how much effort the organisation spends on talking and engaging with people. The top brand was Battleﬁeld, a video game by Electronic Arts.

Top 10: charity sector brands nds 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Dog’s Trust ARKive Blue Cross UK Marie Curie Cancer Care National Trust Teenage Cancer Trust WWF British Heart Foundation British Red Cross Virgin Money Giving

WINNER: Stuart Witts with the award

FOR MORE INFORMATION To see the full list and download a copy of the report to read more about how the list is put together, visit socialbrands100.com

July 2013 People 17

Fundraising New support and service in Orkney One of the most northerly outposts in the British Isles now has a new addition: a Marie Curie Fundraising Group. The launch of the group in Orkney comes just before the rollout of a smallscale pilot of the Marie Curie Nursing Service on the largest of Orkney’s islands later this summer. Chaired by Barbara Todd, the group is based on Mainland, the main island, and covers the 20 inhabited islands off the north coast of Scotland. “Orkney is a very giving, generous community,” said Vonnie Carson, Community Fundraiser in Inverness. “This group is enthusiastic and has all sorts of plans to raise money and support their local service. They want to recruit

fundraisers from other islands to support their efforts.” The pilot of the Marie Curie Nursing Service in Orkney will consist of two Marie Curie Nurses and two Healthcare Assistants and is part of a one-year pilot that begins in August. Project Manager Harry Bunch said: “We’ve developed the scheme in conjunction with the Stromness GPs’ surgery. The service will focus on helping people and families in Stromness, Orkney’s second largest town, and nearby Dounby.”

TAKE HAT: HomeServe staff prepare to scale Snowdon

NEW GROUP: (front) Vonnie Carson (left) and Barbara Todd; (back) Shirley Mcguinness Kirsteen Munro, Sylvia Campbell, Linda Lennie, Sheila Henderson and Freda Bruce

Snowdon trek continues HomeServe support An intrepid team of 75 HomeServe employees from Walsall, Preston and Banbury have trekked more than 1,000 metres to the summit of Mount Snowdon to raise money for Marie Curie Cancer Care. The feat raised more than £15,000 and climbers included members of the senior leadership team, such as UK Chief Executive Ofﬁcer Jonathan King. The fundraisers took on average six hours to complete the route. Jonathan’s King of the Mountain trophy went to the top fundraiser, Joanne Bijsterbosch, who raised a mammoth £1,885. Mr King said: “I continue to be amazed by the dedication shown by

Saintly fundraisers in 69-mile run Three men from the Northampton Saints RFC have run 69 miles along Hadrian’s Wall in aid of Marie Curie Cancer Care. Paul Shields, the club’s Team Manager and former Irish international, Head of Commercial Operations Brian Facer and Community Coach Ross Stewart had raised more than £6,500 when they set off. Paul wanted to support a charity nominated by his mother-in-law, Rozi, who has cancer. He said: “When I see what she has been through, this run is a walk in the park.”

£1,885

Shields, FLOWER POWER (left to right): Paul Shields Daffy the daffodil, Brian Facer and Ross Stewart

Each runner burned an estimated 17,000 calories. If you’d like to make a donation you can visit the team’s justgiving page www.justgiving.com/ultrawall

Sun shines on Slieve Donard climbers In glorious sunshine, 121 individual and corporate supporters took part in the Slieve to Slieve Mountain Challenge in Northern Ireland – scaling the 2,788ft Slieve Donard. “What a day!” said Regional Fundraising Events Manager Suzy McIlveen. “It was incredibly hot, but we made it. The views from both the Saddle and the

everyone at HomeServe in supporting Marie Curie Cancer Care. It’s not just big, fundraising challenges; staff help in hundreds of ways, from Wear Yellow to Work Days to just donating their spare change.” Having originally pledged The amount Joanne to donate £1million over three years, HomeServe Bijsterbosch smashed that target and has raised. now donated more than £1.35 million since adopting Marie Curie as its national charity partner in 2010. The company has extended its partnership until March 2014, and for the fourth consecutive year will sponsor Marie Curie’s Walk Ten events this summer.

summit were breathtaking and the team camaraderie was wonderful.” This year, participants could choose a timed option, competing to be the fastest team to complete the challenge. Mascots from corporate supporters IFA, SHS Group and Tayto joined Marie Curie’s Miss Daffy in a pre-event race. PHONE A FRIEND: Corporate supporters dressed up as part of the event

Come dine with supporters in Dunton A Dine in Dunton meal and quiz night organised by Marie Curie Cancer Care’s South Leicestershire Support Group raised £946 for the charity. The event, held in Dunton Bassett, was led by Marie Curie volunteer Margaret

Brookes and her friend Glenis. Ladies from the Dine in Dunton group worked tirelessly to provide a slap-up four-course meal for more than 60 local people. They were entertained with a quiz provided by Area Fundraising Manager Marea Roberts.

MEAL TIME: Dine in Dunton cooks provided a four-course meal

18 People July 2013

Inbox

TOP TWEETS

Here are a selection of the top tweets from the past few weeks. Follow us on @maricurieuk or tweet using #mariecurieuk Lauren Nelson @LaurenDowrick8

today was the day we handed over this beauty 2 @mariecurieuk all our hard work paid off amazing @RedRocketNelson

Rachel @RVBMikeDignam1D

If it wasn’t for @mariecurieuk my Grandad would be stuck in wheelchair, can’t thank them enough for all the help they have given us

Lee Taft @Taftiﬁcation

Inbox is Marie Curie People’s forum for your letters and emails. If you’ve a brilliant idea or a question about our work – or if something is bugging you – email mariecuriepeople@mariecurie.org.uk

YEAR END I am “only” a volunteer at Marie Curie and so may not understand the historic background nor the ﬁnancial reasons, but it did strike me that having the year end of Marie Curie on 31 March – right in the middle of the busiest period for the charity – may not be ideal. It seems to add to the pressures of the staff and local groups when they are arranging collections, organising people and banking monies. Would a different year end of Marie Curie be more sensible? For example, 31 May – when the Daffodil Appeal will be all completed and when Marie Curie are ready to launch the Blooming Great Tea Party campaign? Just a thought!

Mike Shelmerdine Finance Director Andrew Whitehead replies: Thanks for your suggestion, Mike. A year end of 31 March enables us to plan our patient services with the NHS. The NHS commissions our nursing and hospice services based on April-to-

March ﬁnancial years and this enables us to budget and plan our activities knowing the level of service and funding we will receive. It also enables us to readily report on the level of care undertaken throughout the year. I appreciate that it comes during GDA time but alignment with the NHS commissioners is a very signiﬁcant factor.

TRAVEL SAVINGS As we seek to drive down costs whilst increasing income to further increase what can be spent on nursing and patient care, would it not be appropriate to view training and other reasons for travel strategically by organising more of our required meetings/training around employees’ locations? If a subject is mandatory rather than suggested, then we could organise more training where the employees are based. Numbers will be greater and so it will be easier to arrange/justify on-site training, rather than incurring the costs of travel and overnight stays. Obviously, there are sometimes

good business reasons for travel, but it should be possible to make some savings in this area.

Niall Durdin Regional Operations Officer (London and the South East)

FANTASTIC FUNDRAISING Congratulations to all our Fundraising Groups for a fantastic financial year. Together, 345 groups brought in more than £305,000 – a record sum – that averages out at £8,841 per group. And 49 of our groups raised more than £15,000. Since the new financial year started, a further 45 fundraising groups have formed – we would like to welcome them all. If you are a Marie Curie People reader and would like to find out more about your local fundraising group, please get in touch. For more details, just visit mariecurie.org.uk/groups or call 0845 052 4184.

Sacha Glasgow-Smith Fundraising Volunteer Programme Manager

@mariecurieuk it was a pleasure running the marathon and I had a great time raising money for you!

Martin Williamson @tintom

@mariecurieuk Thanks to the guys who saw us on our way at the @NightriderLdn event. Your smiles made it all real. Such support for our team!

Calum Mckay @cdmackay

@mariecurieuk My dad, whose last days you made more bearable, loved choc digestives with cheese on top!

FACEBOOK FRIENDS

Followers on Facebook are speaking out about the valuable support from Marie Curie. Follow us at facebook.com/MarieCurieUK Michelle Tavener My dad loved a cuppa tea, We even had a tea poem at his funeral. Graham King I will never forget the practical help I received from MC in the last couple of days of my dad’s life. Earth angels. Sheila “Reid” Garrity Couldn’t have coped without you, looking after my mum during the night, so that I could have a decent night sleep! Fantastic people. Sarah Land please everyone support Marie Curie. The nurses are amazing people to everyone including patient. x Russell Hamilton Proud to be a member of South Herefordshire’s Marie Curie Cancer Care Fundrainsing Group. Thanks to all of our supporters.

CARING SERVICES

Challenges and changes for our future development Each issue in our new Caring Services column, Dawn Irons, Communications Lead for Caring Services, will present a taster of hot topics, news and useful information from the team. We have launched the Peacock Awards, which are all about celebrating exceptional contributions from our nurses, across both the hospices and nursing service. We’d like to thank everyone who nominated a nurse – there have been some fantastic entries. The shortlist will be drawn up by our esteemed panel of judges, and invited to Marie Curie’s September Annual General Meeting for the award ceremony, at which the winners will be announced. You will have heard about the transition of nurses’ line management from the Nursing Support Centre back to the regional nursing teams. The ofﬁcial handover took place at the start of July. There are a number of Caring Services projects that are facilitating changes,

It’s more important now that the charity demonstrates to commissioners that we are the ones they want to run their end of life care services.

WRITE TO US

ultimately to aid our future development. It’s important to understand some of the challenges the charity is facing, and why this work is so important for the future of Marie Curie. The changing healthcare and commissioning environment: I’m sure you will know that the NHS is undergoing signiﬁcant change. Therefore, it’s vital that the charity keeps abreast of the changing healthcare landscape to ensure we can continue to deliver excellent care to our patients and families. We also know that some of the challenges that lie ahead will come during the next commissioning round, whereby service providers will predominantly be judged on cost, providing they meet a minimum set of quality standards. Being competitive: It’s more important now than ever before that the charity is able to demonstrate to commissioners that we are the ones they want to run their end of life care services. We need to be able to demonstrate our value for money, ensuring we are competitive compared to other service providers.

We need to demonstrate our value for money

Supporting our workforce: The transition of management back to the regions will mean our nurses have the management support they need. We are recruiting for additional regional administration and Clinical Lead Nurses to support the new regional structure.

Did you enjoy this month’s column or is there something you think people would like to hear more about? Email me and let me know: dawn.irons@mariecurie.org.uk

Do you have a comment about the charity or one of our articles, or a suggestion for a story? Write to us at mariecuriepeople@mariecurie.org.uk. Comments and letters may be edited.

July 2013 People 19

Hatched, matched and more 60 SECONDS WITH...

Proud parents welcome lovely Lulu Senior Strategic Development Manager Tilde Nielsson and Alan DaCosta are the proud parents of Lulu Marie Leocardia DaCosta-Nielsson. Lulu was born on 14 March 2013, weighing 2.97 kg.

John D Carrion He sings, he keeps ﬁt and he’s got one eye on America’s biggest job – meet Project Manager, Future Marie Curie Nursing Service, John D Carrion.

Royals praise Marie Curie at Palace party shifts, to which he replied, ‘I really hope you are enjoying a well-deserved day off!’ He then looked at Kaye, and said [of the Marie Curie Nurses], ‘They are marvellous aren’t they?’” Susan was nominated to attend because she and her partner Jon raise funds tirelessly for the charity. “The whole day was wonderful – more than what we’d hoped for,” she reﬂected. “The chance to speak to the Duchess and Prince Charles – especially as he is our Royal Patron – was so unexpected.”

Marie Curie Nurse Susan Bradley and Marie Curie Welshpool fundraiser Kaye Derwas met HRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cambridge at Buckingham Palace’s ﬁrst garden party of the year. The Duchess chatted with Susan and Kaye. “She instantly recognised my uniform and the daffodil in my lapel,” said Susan, “and told us that she had great admiration for the charity’s work, as our staff cared for her grandfather in his home when he was terminally ill. “I told Prince Charles I did night

WRITE TO US

MARVELLOUS: Susan Bradley on a “well-deserved day off”

Do you have a birth, wedding, civil partnership, retirement or long service to celebrate? Write to us at mariecuriepeople@mariecurie.org.uk

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Q: How long have you worked for Marie Curie? Since January 2013. Q: What did you do before? I worked as Project Manager at the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Q: What are the three most important aspects of your job? One, reviewing the most needed changes to the Marie Curie Nursing Service; two, creating teams to make the recommendations; and three, implementing the changes. Q: Describe your typical day. A typical day is spent planning for future changes, while troubleshooting the changes currently taking place. Q: What do you do when you’re not at work? I sing in a chorus and chair the chorus’s board of trustees. I also try to travel. Q: When was the last time you laughed? Yesterday, when I was at chorus rehearsal. Q: If you were an animal what would you be? A lion. Q: What makes you happy? Summer. Q: What makes you sad? The overwhelming poverty gap throughout the world. Q: What did you want to be when you grew up? An astronaut… or President of the United States. I think there is still time for either – or both. Q. What’s your favourite pudding? Banana cream pie. Q: What was your favourite childhood TV programme? Eureka’s Castle, but I don’t know if that played in the UK. Q: Tell us a fascinating fact about yourself. I used to be very overweight and am now a ﬁtness instructor, having lost 5.5 stone. Q Which ﬁve people, alive or dead, would you like to invite to dinner? Barack Obama, Robert Preston, Abraham Lincoln, Bea Arthur and HM Queen Elizabeth II.

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