Service helps terminally ill patients in Mansfield to stay at home in their final days

Mansfield woman Margaret Nussey, who was helped through her final days by the night support service. | Other 3rd Party

Patients in Mansfield and Ashfield with a terminal illness are being helped to spend the end of their lives with family and friends at home, rather than in hospital.

It’s all thanks to a new call-out support service run by the Nottinghamshire Hospice charity that has proved to be a big success.

The Hospice Night Support service provides practical care and emotional support through the night to patients and carers requesting urgent help.

This prevents traumatic emergency admissions into hospital in the last days of a person’s life.

Margaret Nussey, 85, of Mansfield, benefited from the service after she was diagnosed with metastatic melanoma, a type of skin cancer that spreads to other parts of the body, last October.

Carers visited her at home during the day, but she was left alone at night, so the hospice stepped in.

Margaret’s niece, Stephanie, said: “The hospice support was a lifeline. If it handn’t been for them, my aunt would have been on her own from 7 pm to 9 or 10 am, and it terrified her that something might happen in the night.

“She wanted to die at home but was adamant she didn't want anyone sitting with her all night, so this service was just right for our needs. Words can’t describe the peace of mind it gave us.”

Margaret died last month, but Stephanie was delighted to discover that the support service was now being extended.

Jo Polkey, director of care at the hospice, said: “We are delighted it has been so well received. Our aim is to help people live independently for as long as possible.”