17 October 2024
A new room which will provide staff and relatives with a dedicated space to have important conversations about end-of-life care has been opened at one of the county’s acute hospitals.
Relatives of patients on wards 15 and 16 at Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, which is run by The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH), will now have access to a fully refurbished Swan Suite.
The suite has been developed by Jules Lewis, Swan End of Life Care Lead Nurse, and funded by the Swan Fund with Ward Manager Sharon Angelides and team to give relatives and doctors a dedicated space to have open and honest conversations about end-of-life care.
The refurbishment saw the suite decorated with new furniture purchased with thanks to the generous donations from the Swan Fund of SaTH Charity.
Donations enabled the team to improve the layout and create a calm space which will give relatives an area for respite from the ward and an opportunity to have further discussions about the next steps in care.
Photographs taken by Emma Gibbons, Healthcare Assistant, now adorn the walls and other items have also been generously donated by other staff and supporters, including Jules Lock, Lead Swan EOLC Volunteer, Sharon and Jules’s mum.
Jules Lewis said: “Our aim was to improve the current relatives’ room on Ward 15 and 16. We wanted to create a Swan Suite for relatives to allow staff to have open and honest conversations about end-of-life care.
“I want to thank everyone who has been involved in making this project happen, it will make a real difference to our patients and their relatives during a very difficult time.”
Julia Clarke, Director of Public Participation, said: “On behalf of SaTH Charity we are grateful for the supporters of the Swan Fund, whose generous donations have enabled the Palliative and End of Life Care (PEOLC) Team to improve the experience of the patients and relatives on Ward 15 and 16.”
Hayley Flavell, Director of Nursing, said: “Our patients and their families are at the heart of everything we do. We strive every day to ensure that our patients who are at the end of life, and their loved ones, receive kind, compassionate and dignified care and are supported at the most difficult of times.
“Thanks to the determination and drive of our teams, and by listening and learning from feedback, we have put in place initiatives such as the Swan Rooms. This has been recognised by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in their recent inspection which rated our end of life care services as good in all domains.”
Captions: 1. Sharon Angelides, Ward Manager, and Claire Saphier, Matron, officially open the Swan Suite
2. Jules Lewis, Emma Gibbons, Sharon Angelides, Claire Saphier and Donna Hadley, Divisional Director of Nursing