Amid a national crisis in palliative and end-of-life care – where according to a UK Parliament research briefing, an estimated 100,000 people per year who could benefit from palliative care die without receiving it – Rowcroft Hospice has launched its ‘No One Alone Appeal’.
The appeal aims to highlight the harsh reality that each year too many people in South Devon are unable to access the essential end-of-life care they need due to a critical gap in resources and funding. While Rowcroft is playing a key role in delivering specialist end-of-life care and support to patients and their loved ones in South Devon, the charity stresses that an escalating local demand for its services is placing unparalleled pressures on the hospice. By 2026, The No One Alone Appeal aims to raise an additional £500,000 every year to help Rowcroft expand its specialist services to care for hundreds more people amid the rapidly increasing demand in the community.
Ruth Archer from Brixham is a keen supporter of the appeal, having received support from Rowcroft during the hardest days imaginable after her husband David was diagnosed with life-limiting pancreatic cancer in February 2022.
“David’s brief and brutal illness meant that he had several admissions to hospital, and this was extremely distressing for him,” said Ruth.
“However, Rowcroft was able to offer us the Hospice at Home service, where he was much more comfortable. The few days he spent at home were the best we could’ve hoped for and Rowcroft’s nurses were with us whenever we needed them, ensuring he was safe and pain-free. I will be forever grateful that we were able to bring him home where he passed away peacefully.
“Sadly, nearly everyone at some point in their life will experience the trauma of life-limiting illness, either directly or as a loved one, and the crucial services and the support that Rowcroft offers shine a light in the overwhelming darkness. I will be forever grateful for the support I have received.”
Each year, Rowcroft Hospice delivers expert end-of-life care and support to around 2,500 patients and their loved ones across South Devon. Through the No One Alone Appeal, the charity aims to raise the funds to help care for an additional 260 patients per year by 2026. This will be a key milestone towards the hospice’s longer term goal of supporting a total of 3,000 patients and those closest to them by 2030.
“The driving force behind the No One Alone Appeal is the principal that everyone deserves exceptional end-of-life care,” said Mark Hawkins, CEO of Rowcroft Hospice. “And our vision is a world where no patient with life-limiting illness, or their loved ones, should have to face this difficult and vulnerable time alone.
“Being diagnosed with a life-limiting illness turns patients’ lives upside down. Not only must they manage complex symptoms but they often also experience an overwhelming sense of fear and anxiety. With the support of our donors, Rowcroft can make a profound difference by offering care and support to people through these unimaginably tough times.
“We’re incredibly grateful to the NHS for funding 24% of our services. But we’re also acutely aware that as a charity we lack the resources to meet the spiralling local demand that is due to people living longer and with increasingly complex symptoms. Through this appeal and by expanding our services and continuing to act as a beacon of excellence in end-of-life care education and training for local health and social care professionals across the region, we’re able to work towards our aspiration of specialist care for all who need it.“
Every donation to our appeal makes such a difference. Your gift – no matter how large or small – will help local patients and those closest to them to make every day the best day possible.”
A donation of £25 could fund an hour of care during a first home visit by a Rowcroft nurse, so they can start offering tailored specialist support to a patient and their loved ones, while a donation of £1,500 would give a patient and those closest to them vital nursing support in the last two weeks of life.
For more information about the No One Alone Appeal and to make a donation, please go to www.rowcrofthospice.org.uk/no-one-alone
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