For those seeking end of life care there is a new option in Vancouver. St. John Hospice at the University of British Columbia will be moving in residents from Marion Hospice on Sept 11.
The new 14-bed, two-storey facility on the UBC campus has a communal living and dining area, a family room and a garden courtyard. The lower floor will house a UBC faculty of medicine palliative care research facility.
The opening has not been without opposition. In 2011, when the hospice was first proposed, some residents in a condo building beside the proposed site complained that it was disrespectful to the cultural values of those opposed to living near a hospice.
Janet Fan, a spokeswoman for the group, circulated a petition and said in the Globe and Mail at the time that UBC was ignoring the feelings of residents who had a “deep-rooted fear of living too close to the dying and dead in our cultures.” To calm fears, immigrant services agency SUCCESS provided an interpreter to help better understand the issues of concerned residents, offered counselling and settlement services, and facilitated a tour of a similar hospice, according to Queenie Choo, the agency’s CEO. This week, Elroy Jacobs, who lives directly adjacent to the hospice, said while he heard about the original complaints, he wasn’t aware of any recent objections from his neighbours. “It is a non-issue for me,” he said.
The value of the hospice is clear, according to UBC’s Dr. Graydon Meneilly, professor and head of the department of medicine. Meneilly said the facility provides an “uplifting environment” for patients and their families in an “idyllic setting.”
Colleen Cruickshank knows the impact a hospice can have on those caring for a dying loved one. Her husband John died of cancer last year and she said up until he was admitted to Marion Hospice, no one in the medical profession would say her husband was dying. “When he was discharged [from hospital], the doctor looked me in the eye, shook my hand warmly and said good luck,” she said.
It wasn’t until they arrived at the hospice that the family could come to terms with the reality of John’s situation. “There is an acceptance there,” she said.
Meneilly said in Canada, as opposed to in Europe, medical professionals don’t receive enough medical training about how to discuss dying with patients and their families. He believes having the UBC faculty of medicine as a participating partner in the new hospice will allow students to better engage with palliative care needs as healthcare practitioners in the future. “With training, these kids will be more willing to talk about these things,” he said.
Cruickshank said in the hospice she could finally focus on being with her husband for his last days. Hospice staff controlled his pain and tended to the family’s needs by answering their questions and bringing in food. Nurses even made up a bed for her so she could be with her husband on his last night. He died holding her hand. Cruickshank says she knows for her own death she wants to be in a hospice.
“It made me less afraid,” she said.
The Order of St. John Palliative Care Foundation raised money to cover the majority of the construction costs for the $5.4 million hospice. The provincial government contributed $1 million and UBC provided the land and supported the planning. Vancouver Coastal Health is providing $1.6 million per year for staffing.
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