Hospice confusion

Published 14 Jul 2010 09:30

I am a little confused by the statements made in last week's edition by Leo Martin, chairman of St Margaret's Hospice, and I am not alone on this.

We are told Professor Martin allegedly requested a joint statement with the health board and then said he rejected the statement as he disagreed with what it said.

Professor Martin then went on to say he wanted a statement from the health board that would say the hospice would not care for people with dementia, it would not become a care home and would only care for those requiring end of life care and palliative care.

The health board made it clear it is not prepared to accept this, so we have deadlock. Professor Martin, nor his deputy, has not once kept us informed as to what is going on and we have to rely on reports from the Clydebank Post to keep us in the picture.

What did Professor Martin object to in the joint statement?

The hospice is very much in danger of losing all support it has gathered as it continues to keep supporters and volunteers very much in the dark.

Can Professor Martin or his deputy tell us when was the last time they met with a group of supporters and volunteers?

When have they explained what has been said in meetings with the health board?

John Bannon, a hospice supporter and a former member of the health board, is reported as saying that a range of options had been recycled by the health board and rejected by the hospice.

Can he tell us what these options were?

The health board has been vilified by many but such criticism now seems unfair and is it not just possible that it could be the hospice which is proving difficult to deal with?

The hospice is a private organisation, so why should it expect to be treated differently from any others which the health board has dealings with?

Is it not the right of the health board to decide which supplier it wishes to provide care?

The health board has also given an assurance in the Post that the hospice would not suffer financially, which is welcome news and yet we had been made to believe otherwise. Who is peddling such misleading information?

If the health board said it will give financial help and we were led to believe that the hospice could be facing closure due to a possible financial black hole, then have we not all been slightly duped?

We have been kept in the dark long enough and the owners of St Margaret's should now be asking the chairman and his deputy to consider their positions.

I am sure they are decent people but they really should stand aside immediately and allow others to take the hospice forward as they have lost our long held support, and although this is sad, it is a reality.

Derek Johnstone, address supplied

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This letter appeared in Clydebank Post 14 Jul 10

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