Ardgowan Hospice Services Update – With effect from Monday 23rd March 2020

Due to the continuing spread of COVID-19 virus otherwise known as Coronavirus, Ardgowan Hospice has taken precautionary action to protect our essential community and In Patient palliative care service. We are in close contact with Health Protection Scotland and the NHS/HSCP and are being guided by the public health information we are receiving. We provide many services to people in the hospice, the community and, our hospice buildings are visited by many members of the public. You will therefore understand why we have had to make some difficult decisions about the ongoing provision of some of our services.
As care-providers to some of the most vulnerable patients in the community we are working closely with the other major health providers across Inverclyde to make sure that these needs will be met with the very best level of care. In order to protect our patients and to ensure we have sufficient staff and volunteers to provide this care; we have taken the decision to temporarily suspend some services. This will ensure that we can maintain our vital community palliative care services and In Patient Centre capacity, whilst protecting the safety of our patients, families, volunteers and employees.
With effect from Monday 23rd March, the following changes to our services will take place:
Day Services held in the ACCESS at Ardgowan building will be suspended. This includes day services, peer group meetings and complementary therapy services. We will continue to support patients via phone calls and teleconferencing where possible. The Drop in service will also be suspended however we will continue to provide support by phone.
Compassionate Inverclyde All non-essential volunteering will cease within IRH, which means that the Back Home Box (BHB) helpers will no longer go around the wards with the boxes. A skeleton service will be in place at the BHB store to respond to provide boxes without entering a clinical area. The NODA service will also cease at present. The friendship hub and singing group will be suspended and contact will be made by phone to the vulnerable people who attend. Phone calls will also replace visits provided by the Back Home Visitors. The focus will move to responding to the need of the community and those frail elderly people impacted by self-isolation.
Community Clinical Nurse Specialist Services
From March 23rd the Community Clinical Nurse Specialist Team will continue to support patients and families however home visits will unfortunately be impacted. We will be utilising technology to enable us to remotely support patients working closely with our partners in health and social care to care for them. Each patient will be contacted separately to explain how we will support them.
Patient and Family Support Bereavement and Counselling out-patient and home visits will be suspended however we will be utilising technology to enable us to remotely support patients, carers and their families.
The In-Patient Unit will remain open as normal. Visiting rules have changed that only next of kin, essential family members or those agreed with the patient are able to visit.
We ask anyone who is feeling unwell with symptoms suggestive of coronavirus infection, particularly high temperature, shortness of breath or a new continuous cough, NOT TO VISIT THE HOSPICE and to review the advice and guidance on the links to the GOV.UK and NHS UK websites below, or contact 111 NHS24 if unsure.