We recently asked Anna Wolkowski - Director of Clinical Services, and Dr Ben Zylicz - Consultant in Palliative Medicine about Dove House and it’s role in the community. Here’s what they said:
Why is Dove House Hospice such a necessary part of the Hull community?
Anna Wolkowski: While there are other providers of various aspects of specialist palliative care in Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire, DHH is the only provider which offers a full range of multi-disciplinary services to patients with life limiting illnesses of any kind. These include inpatient, outpatient, therapy and support services, Drop-In and psychosocial services. The care we offer is based on need rather than diagnosis and we accept referrals from any source including the patient themselves. DH is perceived as a core service by the local PCTs as the service we provide is not provided anywhere else. As other palliative care services have developed in the community, a clear role has emerged for the hospice in terms of caring for those whose needs could simply not be met elsewhere ie complex pain and symptom control, dual diagnosis and patients and families with special needs that require intensive psychosocial intervention.
Why is Hull such an attractive place to work in?
Anna Wolkowski: Hull is a vibrant city that has lots of attractions – historical, cultural and sporting- including our newly promoted - and doing very well! - premiere league football team, Hull City. We have great theatres and are the home of the world famous playwright John Godber (‘Bouncers’) and Hull Truck Theatre. We also have ‘The Deep’ which is a unique submarium that juts out into the River which is of course spanned by the fantastic Humber Bridge. Hull offers brilliant connections to Europe by sea and air and on top of all this, the houses are substantially cheaper than other parts of the country. The surrounding area has superb historical market towns like Beverley and a beautiful coastline.
We work closely with our NHS colleagues in all surrounding areas including the newly built state of the art Cancer Centre at Castle Hill hospital in Hull. Doctors will in future be able to spend time working there as part of their work at the hospice. We are a partner of the Hull and York Medical School as well.
As the consultant in this hospice, why is the service provided at Dove House so important?
Ben Zylicz: When the disease is incurable you cannot do much to halt it, some patients and also doctors despair about this. However, if you look at it in a different way, you may also discover that although you cannot do much to control the disease you may do quite a lot for the patient who is carrying this disease. Once you can see the difference you can make, you will enjoy it. Control of pain and other symptoms is paramount and may drastically improve patients’ quality of life in the time he/she still has left. Death is not a failure of medicine but a normal state we all need to go through. You may hear from your patient something like: ‘I lost my hope and no longer felt like a human being, but you changed it. Thank you.’ This is extremely rewarding.
I am committed to Dove House because they promote this way of working which makes such a difference to patients, their families and also the doctors and other clinicians that work here. Since coming here, I’ve found the organization to be supportive both from a working, personal and educational point of view. I feel that it provides a service that is not provided anywhere else locally and I feel I am part of something that is essential for the community. Dove House has an excellent reputation with other healthcare professionals both locally and nationally. It is also becoming known abroad as well.
What plans are in place for the development of the service?
Anna Wolkowski: Consolidating the current service we offer ensures that all our staff have all the competencies they require to meet the challenges set out in the recently published End of Life Care Strategy. Developing our out patient clinics, satellite day units, and becoming more involved in the provision of services that allow people to remain in their own homes as long as they wish to. In addition, developing our education service further into raising awareness of end of life care and reducing anxieties. Our Clinical Strategy for the next 5 years will be published soon.
How would joining Dove House Hospice benefit a young Dr's Career?
Ben Zylicz: Before you make a career in health care it is good to look around. Palliative care as it is practised in hospices is bridging the gap between the general practice at home and general medicine in the hospital. It is a dimension you should be aware of and this will help you to see life from a different angle. So the experience in palliative care can be a foundation for any other generalistic career in the health care. There are also great opportunities in terms of working some time at the newly built state of the art cancer centre at Castle Hill Hospital in Hull. We have excellent relationships with our colleagues in oncology and this sort of experience would be valuable for a young doctor.
With the current uncertainty in the market how does Dove House Hospice ensure sustainability for its staff and service users?
Anna Wolkowski: Dove House has a fantastic track record in terms of surviving difficult times. It has grown from a small day service to a fully fledged specialist palliative care service in the space of 25 years. It has always responded to the needs of the community and kept up to date with all the requirements of its NHS commissioners. We believe this will stand the hospice in good stead for the future. We are aware that any modern healthcare environment needs to change and adapt all the time and our hospice has embraced this culture of flexibility and forward thinking from both a clinical and financial perspective.
