Claire Irving

CEO, Martlets

Claire

Sitting down to write this article, I was struck that I’ve now had the privilege of working as Martlets’ CEO for one year. It’s been an amazing year full of learning, fun, challenge and connection. To experience the passion of the people who work and volunteer at Martlets, and the people in our community who support us is a wonderful thing and I love coming to work.

So, what brought me here? I’ve worked in the not-for-profit and voluntary sector for 25 years, mainly focussing on health care inequality, cancer and – for the last 16 years – hospice care. People often think that working at a charity like Martlets, where we deal closely with death, dying and bereavement must be terribly sad. Yes, there are sad times, but hospice care is about living as well as dying, and the humanity of hospice care is a joyful thing to be around.

My passion for the world of hospice was driven, perhaps unexpectedly, by my experience of having children. I had incredible support from the community and hospital midwifery teams in Brighton & Hove and while there were moments of uncertainty or worry through the stages of my pregnancies, I knew what the healthcare system around me would offer me and my babies. I knew when to expect scans, tests and the choices available to me about where I would give birth.

What struck me, like a lightning bolt, when I returned to work at the hospice when my maternity leave finished was why wasn’t this the case for people facing death, dying and bereavement? Th ree things are certain for each of us – we are born, we will pay taxes and we will die. We all want our death to be long in the future, but when it comes, why shouldn’t we all feel certain of what would be offered to us by way of care, specialist advice and emotional support? And why shouldn’t we feel comforted to know that someone will support our family while this happens and after we are gone? www.martlets.org.uk

So, here I am at Martlets. Working with our clinical teams, our fundraisers and our support staff to try to bring that vision to life. I can see the ever increasing need that people in our community have for our hospice care, the Covid pandemic has made that need even more acute. We are using carefully saved money wisely, investing so that our hospice building is fit for the future. And we are providing care in people’s homes and in our wards all around the city and in the ‘Havens and ‘Deans, all the while dependent on our community - on you - to fund the work we do.

Thank you so much for walking alongside us and for your part in helping your community, your neighbours, your city during the most difficult of times. And if you share my thinking that our city and community deserves the very best at end-of-life, I would love to hear from you.