SPRING 2002
HOSPICE HEADLINES
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Shining Bright at Light Up A Life |
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Join our Flora London Marathon |
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Sponsor the Team Now's your chance to sponsor an individual runner or the team as a whole. Taking part in the Flora London Marathon is a big commitment and getting fit takes hours and hours of training. We're really grateful to all our runners so please make it worth their while by making a donation. Click here to download a form or pledge on-line. |
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Marathon "Walkers" David Walker (centre) has run the last 21 London Marathons and this year he is looking forward to running alongside his two sons Jamie (left) and John (right) to raise funds for the IRHH. David said "The IRHH is a local charity which does a wonderful job and is a cause I believe in strongly." |
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Gift Aid Brings In An Extra £25,000
The simplified Gift Aid Scheme which was introduced in April 2000 has had a
huge impact on the value of tax recoveries that we have been able to make this
year. We expect to reclaim around a fantastic £25,000 this year which
is enough to fund an Iain Rennie nurse for a whole year! More and more IRHH
supporters have completed a Gift Aid Declaration enabling us to get an extra
28p for every £1 they donate. "Gift Aiding" your donation is
really easy: all we need from you is a completed Declaration (click
here to download or complete
on-line) and, as long as you pay tax we can do the rest and it applies to
any personal donation.
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The IRHH as put a lot of work into making the most of the Gift Aid tax concession and we'd like to say a special thanks to volunteer, Joyce Smith, who processes all the claims and to our auditors, Cansdale & Co. who have helped us get our systems and procedures running efficiently. |
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Knockout Challenge 2002
Now's the time to get a team together for Iain Rennie's third Knockout Challenge
event on Sunday 5th May on the Rye at High Wycombe. As usual there will be a
Children's Competition and an Inter-Company (or adult team) Challenge involving
inflatable obstacles, props, water and gallons of foam in a series of wacky
games. Don't delay, call 01442 890222 or click here for more
details and to download a Registration Form.
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A Message from our President, Moira Rennie |
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 PICTURE L-R: Janet Townsend (Mayoress), Jane Westall (IRHH Ridgeway Nursing Team Leader), Valerie Gunn (IRHH Chairman of Trustees), Derek Townsend (Mayor of Dacorum), Simon Bowes-Lyons, Sue Varvel (IRHH Senior Nurse Manager), Sue Jarvie (IRHH Dacorum Nursing Team Leader), Rowena Dean (IRHH Chief Executive). |
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The Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire, Simon
Bowes-Lyons, found out about the special work of the Iain Rennie Hospice
At Home nurses when he visited the Tring office on Tuesday 18th September.
The Lord Lieutenant, who is the Queen's representative in the County, was
the guest of the Mayor of the Borough of Dacorum, Cllr Derek Townsend, and
met nurses and staff at the IRHH as part of a day spent visiting organisations
and companies throughout the Borough. As the Mayor's chosen charity during
his year in office, we were honoured to receive a special visit and were
grateful for the opportunity to tell him all about Hospice At Home care.
Click here to enlarge. |
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Mayor's Appeal Latest
Derek and Janet Townsend, the Mayor and Mayoress, have been incredibly busy
and we are grateful to them for working so hard on behalf of the IRHH. In addition
to their mayoral duties, Derek and Janet have organised a number of fundraising
events and their appeal has raised over £10,000 to date.
Click here to see a report on a Charity
Wine Tasting hosted by the Mayor and Mayoress.
Where there's a Will …Alan Willett is working with us to help raise awareness
about the importance of legacies.
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You don't need to leave it up to
a faceless administrator to decide who has your house, your money and your
possessions. Surely you want to decide who gets what and, most importantly,
be sure that your family is provided for. The only way to ensure this happens
is to put it in writing - so do make a will. None of us know exactly when we are going to die and therefore the value of our estate can fluctuate in much the same way as property and share prices do. Generally, there is a balance left after you have made your family bequests. Without depriving your family of their inheritance, this extra money - called "residue"- can be used for bequests to charity. As the amount of the residue is not known until after death, it may be simpler to allocate a percentage to each of your chosen charities - e.g., 50% to your favourite charity and 25% to each of two others. |
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Why Charities?
Charities rely very heavily on legacies for funds and, in some cases, it can be over 50% of their total voluntary income (the average, however, is 20-25%). We at the IRHH fall well short of this and that is why a "legacy" awareness campaign has been launched. Legacy fundraising depends a great deal on public awareness of the "cause" and spreading the word amongst family and friends is a vital part of this programme. In today's economic climate an increasing number of the older population are income poor (living on fixed incomes) but capital rich (mainly due to increased property values). Many in this category would like to give (or be more generous) to charities but simply feel they cannot afford to. Instead of making a specific donation now many people may prefer to consider a legacy contribution based on the residue of their estate. Research shows that older people are not embarrassed about discussing death and it gives them enormous pleasure to know that they are able to help their favourite charity by "leaving a little something" in their Will. If the bequest is specified through the residue route then a "little something" can sometimes be substantial. The most important issue has to be ensuring that we have made a Will. This means being able to leave exactly what we want to the right people. By bequeathing a legacy to a charity (or charities) of choice through the residue of an estate is the one sure way to make everyone happy. We can provide help and advice about making or changing your will and the IRHH operates a free Will Writing service. Email rbreakwell@irhh.org for details. |
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Mike Warburton, recently retired IRHH Trustee, writes
"It has been a privilege to be able to be involved with IRHH over the last
few years. As a Trustee over that period I have witnessed the dedication and
professionalism of our service, as well as its growth which has necessitated
significant changes to the support areas of finance and administration.
IRHH throughout is such a friendly organisation and is an oasis of care for
others in an increasingly selfish world. It is therefore with regret that I
have resigned my trusteeship as I have now left the Chiltern area. Needless
to say, I will spread the word elsewhere and will keep in touch from time to
time.
I know that I leave IRHH in hands that are safe but creative and ones that will
ensure its prosperity in the future. My thanks to all for the experience."
Iain Rennie e-News
Our subscription e-mail service will be launched shortly bringing supporters
regular news about the IRHH. It's fast, fun and free so send an email to e-news@irhh.org
to sign up.
RIP Audrey Spellman
Audrey Spellman, who died recently, was a well known personality of the Farnhams.
At various times she had been a member of the parish council and a committee
member of the Farnhams' Society. She was a tireless worker in the community
and actively supported and worked with local organisations involving both young
and old in the district. It was in character that she was a founder member of
the recently formed Farnhams' IRHH Fundraising Group.
She will be sadly missed by her many friends and associates.
Comings and Goings:
Welcome to:
Ridgeway Team - Libby
Shaw and Jean Jones
South Bucks Team,
Bank Nurse Claire Grainger has joined as a full team member
PA to Rowena Dean - Delia Orbell
Ridgeway Bank Nurse - Maxime Pettengell
Promotions:
Following some excellent interviews and presentations, Allison Lloyd, South
Bucks Team; Julie Binnee, Lynda Roche & Libby Shaw, Ridgeway
Team; and Jan Cooper, Dacorum
Team; have all been promoted from Specialist Support Nurse to Clincial Nurse
Specialist. Having completed her CIPD Personnel Qualification, Emily Smith
is now working full-time as Voluntary Services Manager, based at our Cedar Barn
office.
Goodbye to:
Alex Pope, Ridgeway Team
Marion Woodman, Dacorum/Ridgeway
Teams
Margaret Hewitt, Wycombe
Team
Lesley Tilson, South
Bucks Bank Nurse
Anne Howard, Ridgeway
Bank Nurse
Roger Sheppard, Volunteer Mobile Information Unit Co-ordinator
Vacancies:
We are currently recruiting for a CNS vacancy in the Wycombe
Team and a Support Nurse for the Dacorum
Team.
We are also seeking a new Volunteer Mobile Information Unit Co-ordinator. Email
rbreakwell@irhh.org for details.
New Home Wanted
We reported in the last issue of Doorstep that we needed a new office in the
South Bucks area where we could base two nursing teams and have enough space
to store nursing equipment. We have managed to arrange a temporary solution
to enable the teams to have their weekly meetings in more spacious surroundings
thanks to "Sign" in Penn Village but the long term situation has yet
to be resolved. If you know of somewhere we could use or have any ideas for
us to follow up on then please give us a call or email rdean@irhh.org.
Financial Matters
January is traditionally the time when we prepare our budget for the following
financial year. This time around two items of information are to hand which
have implications for next year. The government has already announced the likely
national uplift in nursing salaries at 3% and, as this is the largest part of
our expenditure budget, we can predict the impact on our budget somewhat earlier
than usual.
You will have read elsewhere that our income this year has been boosted in a
number of areas which we hope will continue into 2002/03. The good news is that
one of our statutory purchasers has taken the decision to increase the level
of our service agreement to provide 30% of our anticipated expenditure in their
area. This is certainly evidence that the Iain Rennie service is in accord with
the strategy of this Primary Care Trust and we are grateful to them for supporting
us in this very direct way.
The National Cancer Plan published by the NHS just over a year ago focussed
on the need for better access to hospice and palliative care services and many
of us working in the independent sector are involved in the strategic plans
for delivery of care at the local and regional level. Political lobbying continues
at the national level for greater funding for independent hospices but at the
local level there is a great deal for us to do to support and maintain the lobbying
pressure. The Iain Rennie Hospice At Home is working collaboratively in this
respect with colleagues in other local services to see how we can influence
more effectively. Collaboration can also ensure that our resources are shared
and skills used more widely.
The hospice movement is underpinned by the voluntary contributions of a generous
national population who have consistently supported the cause. The Iain Rennie
service reflects this history and the one thing we can be sure of is that we
will continue to rely on our supporters and the local communities for support
in the next financial year and into the future.
Copy Dates
For the next two editions of Doorstep are Friday 26th April (Summer) and Friday
30th August (Autumn).
Sue Grace looks back after a year in post as Iain Rennie's Family Support Co-ordinator
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I have lots of memories of working with many different people,
but would like to tell you about our new venture - an emotional/social group
for some of our bereaved clients. It was planned that the group would meet
for about a year, with the idea that the participants would then perhaps
move on and develop their own social events/circle. It all started in September 2001 at Hazlemere when I teamed up with Daphne Vessey - known to many as one of the five original Iain Rennie nurses - to organise this. The first week saw me pacing up and down the room (kindly lent by a local church) quite convinced that no-one would turn up. When we still had no-one there after some twenty minutes I was wringing my hands! |
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It was Daphne who said that her worry was that people might still be wanting to come in two years. I privately thought she had taken leave of her senses and that I'd give anything for a couple of people to come for two consecutive sessions! As always though, Daphne was right. Quite suddenly the place became a
hive of activity and we could hardly keep up with the number of people
who suddenly arrived, accompanied by various Iain Rennie team nurses!
Never have I felt quite so relieved - or indeed made quite so many cups
of tea all at once. |
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Providing a 24 hour service for patients and families is both demanding and
rewarding. Helen Joels, IRHH Education & Support Co-ordinator, describes
a typical experience for Iain Rennie nurses on-call.
| I've been a nurse with IRHH for 5 months and I'm worrying about being on-call until tomorrow morning. Who will ring? What will I say? What can I do to help? At 3.00am the pager rings, with a message from our Night Answering Service: "Can you please ring Mrs Baker - it's urgent". I ring. Mrs Baker is at the end of her tether - she has been caring for her adult daughter for over a year with very little help. The District Nurses and IRHH nurses have offered more help but she wants to do as much of the caring as she can herself. Crying down the phone she tells me that she can't carry on - she's hurt her back, and her daughter needs help back to bed. She can't manage. "Give me twenty minutes and I'll be there," I say. "Can you really come now?" she asks. |
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After 2 cups of tea apiece and with her daughter asleep, Mrs Baker
is no longer crying. We have worked out a way in which the District Nurses and
IRHH nurses can come each day to care for Ruth and an IRHH volunteer can sit
with her while Mrs Baker goes out to have her hair done. It's been a turning
point. Mrs Baker hugs me.
At 8.00am the pager goes again. "Please ring Mr Duckworth - he sounded
poorly". I ring. Mr Duckworth tells me he is being sick and can't keep
any food down. I tell him I'll ring his GP, we'll review his medication and
I will visit him. I check that his wife can help him at the moment. I talk to
the GP - we agree on an injection. I organise the prescription, then visit Mr
Duckworth and give him the injection.
The next day at the weekly Iain Rennie Nurses' team meeting, Mr
Duckworth rings in sounding very happy. "I've just had toast and scrambled
eggs for breakfast. That injection worked wonders!" he tells me.
My first visit of the afternoon is to an elderly lady who lives with her daughter.
The daughter is worried that her Mum is in pain though she never complains.
Please can an IRHH nurse visit? I pull up outside a lovely old cottage. Mary
lets me in - "Mum's lived here all her married life. Dad died last year
and now the doctor tells me she's really ill." I find Alice's bedroom.
She is lying rigid in her bed. "No, I'm not in pain," she says. "Would
you like me to tell you how the IRHH nurses can help you?" I say. She nods.
"We can visit you at home, talk about your medicines and plan how to keep
you comfortable." "At home?" she asks. "Yes, that's what
the Iain Rennie Hospice At Home does - we look after people in their homes."
There is a pause and I can see tears in her eyes. "I thought if I told
you I was in pain I'd have to go to hospital," she says,"and I'm not
going to leave this house." "Are you in pain?" I ask. "Yes
- here and here," pointing to her stomach and back. "Then I can arrange
for medicines to be brought here. I'll organise it right away, if that's OK
with you." She smiles and squeezes my hand.
Now I know why I'm an Iain Rennie nurse - we can meet people's needs, bring
care to the home and make a real difference. Email hjoels@irhh.org.
News Roundup
The Iain Rennie Hospice shops together with the surplus from card sales contribute
significantly to the income of IRHH and this year turnover and surplus are both
ahead of budget. Thanks to everyone involved in these very successful ventures.
Nationally charity shops are declaring an 8.2% increase on sales
of donated goods on last year compared to commercial retailing at 6.2%. Iain
Rennie shops are keeping alongside the national trend with an increase of 8%
for the first 8 months of the current financial year compared with the same
period last year.
Christmas card and seasonal merchandise sales were higher than ever this year.
100,000 cards went on sale at the end of the summer and we have virtually sold
out. We will be reviewing our card sales as usual during January so if you received
a card which you loved, send it in to us as we are always looking for new designers.
Thanks to all the supporters who held card sales or helped on stalls over the
period leading up to Christmas.
A Department Store For Princes
Risborough!
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After many years of running a very small shop in the town and having to carry bags to be sorted up a flight of stairs, we have moved our outlet over the road into new premises. All credit goes to Manager Brenda Williams and the volunteer staff who worked tirelessly before, during and after the move to transfer stock and get the new operation up and running. The new shop is now officially open and trading very successfully. Do pop in if you're in the town. With the larger premises, Brenda is looking to add to her team of volunteers, so if you have a couple of hours to spare each week or know of someone who might be interested, give her a call on 01844 344130. |
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For the second year the Warners
End Shop put on a wonderful Christmas window display which was a great attraction.
Warners End also celebrated a birthday in November - its second. Our congratulations
go to Manager June Coyle and her team of volunteers. June is looking to recruit
more volunteers for the shop so give her a call on 01442 260696 if you have
some time to spare.
The team at Bennettsgate
organised a "Be A Star" competition, inviting local children to design
a star to go on the Christmas tree in the window. All the stars were judged
by Dacorum Mayor, Derek Townsend and the winner was Craig Dicker who received
a prize and vouchers. His star was put on top of the tree for the festive season.
The shop marked its third birthday during November with a party for customers
and volunteers.
The High Wycombe Bookshop
took the theme of Christmas into the window with a wonderful display of fiction,
poetry, crafts and cookery. People often book their holidays immediately in
the New Year so travel and guide books will be featured in the next few weeks.
The bookshop also celebrated its first birthday with a lunchtime party for everyone
in the shop.
Tring Shop had a very successful month in November, breaking all records
to take a staggering £18,400 of income. The shop celebrated its 8th birthday
during the month and it is an indication of its success that many of the regular
customers who shopped with us in the first few weeks are still finding bargains.
Many of our first volunteers are also still working in the shop.
All the shops are having Sales early in the new year so pop in and see what
treasures you can discover.
FUN, FACTS & FIGURES
It is impossible to list every event and donation that we receive and the
following is just a small selection. We are incredibly grateful for every gift
and constantly marvel at the generosity, ingenuity and imagination of our supporters.
The John Howard Fun Day
Picture and stories
from a day of fundraising held in tribute to a wonderful local man.
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Sally Scoops Lottery Jackpot
Sally Miller generously donated £500 back after winning the top prize in a recent Hospice Lottery Draw. Sally knows from personal experience how important hospice care can be as her late husband received care when we became ill. We are really pleased to hear that her windfall will come in useful as she is getting married again later this year. Click here to join. |
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The Mayor's May Dance The Dacorum Pavilion will be the venue for the Mayor's next major fundraising event when he hosts an evening of music and dancing with Mr Kite's Benefit Band with special guests from Pepper Youth. What's On gives full details of how to get your hands on tickets for what is sure to be a great night out. |
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Ship Shape Guests at the "Shipwreck Ball" organised by the Rotary Club of Great Missenden and the Inner Wheel Club of Aylesbury were invited to dress as they were when the ship went down. Our picture shows organisers Sandra and Alan Maizels. The event raised over £3000. |
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Golf Club Support |
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Service Clubs, Masonic Lodges, Clubs and Societies Every postbag that arrives at the IRHH offices contains a donation from an organisation. We really could not survive without the support of the many Service Organisations, Masonic Lodges, clubs and societies who are so generous to us. There is never enough space in Doorstep to mention every donation, but we do send our heartfelt thanks to everyone who fundraises on our behalf. Masonic Support - click here for more |
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Unwanted Foreign Currency
Have you got a stash of foreign currency which, with the introduction of the
Euro, may be difficult to use or exchange? If so, we can put it to good use.
Simply pop it in a coin bag and take it to any Iain Rennie Shop or office. If
you complete a label, we may also be able to reclaim tax paid on your unwanted
currency through Gift Aid!
Surgery Striders Doctors, staff and friends of Parkwood Drive Surgery in Warners End, Hemel Hempstead did a 10 mile sponsored walk in aid of the Iain Rennie Hospice At Home in September. Our pictures shows them leaving Berkhamsted Castle. Click here for more |
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Aston Clinton Bypass
We would be pleased to hear from anyone who would be interested in helping to
organise a major fundraising event to celebrate the opening of the Aston Clinton
Bypass in Summer 2003.
It's Not What You Know . . .
Hilary Derbyshire writes about her work as an IRHH Fundraising volunteer
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For the last three years I have worked as an Iain Rennie volunteer under
the job title of 'Trusts Co-ordinator'. In practice, that means that I
have spent my time making applications for funding to organisations such
as charitable trusts, community foundations, local churches or local councils.
Of course, other people working for Iain Rennie also make funding applications,
and part of my job is to co-ordinate these activities so as to ensure
that we don't duplicate approaches. |
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| So, who do you know? Could you
help to put us in touch with your local church? Do you know someone who
has a link with a charitable trust or the charities committee of a local
company? If you could pave the way for an application for funding then please
get in touch via Tring office or Email hderbyshire@irhh.org. |
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What It Means to be a Home Volunteer
We asked Jane Fitzgerald to give Doorstep readers a flavour of this important
aspect of Iain Rennie care.
Home Volunteers work in the homes of our clients and their families.
We don't do 'nursing' work as such, but we help with many, often everyday, tasks
that can seem so easy for those of us in good health, but make all the difference
for our clients.
The things I like best about home volunteering are the variety of things I may
need to do, and that I know just how much it means to our clients.
When the 'phone goes, I never know what is around the corner: I could be asked
to spend a couple of hours a week with a client's young family; help an older
person by running errands such as shopping, walking the dog or driving them
to hospital appointments; or I simply may be asked to spend time with a client
to allow their partner to leave the house for a few hours a week.
The one thing I do know is that no two client's situations are the same and
that the quality of help I can offer each one is largely dependent on my ability
to empathise with every individual and to understand their specific needs.
Not that I ever feel isolated: when I'm working on a case I can talk with a
nurse at any time. We also have regular support meetings with on-going training,
and can join the nurses' team meetings. And new home volunteers, of course,
attend a training course before they begin to work in people's homes.
If you are considering applying to become a home volunteer, you'll probably
want to know the skills you will need. There aren't any formal qualification
requirements, but you will certainly need to be adaptable and flexible to accommodate
the different situations you'll meet, you'll need to be a caring and patient
person, and a sense of humour comes in useful too! Since you will often be working
on your own, you need to be able to work on your own initiative, and to feel
confident to deal with situations as they arise.
But, at the end of the day, I just feel so humble to be invited into someone's
home at such a difficult time for them, and so privileged to be in a position
to provide the help and support that can make such a difference at that time.
New and Developing Volunteer Roles
The first training programme for volunteer Bereavement Visitors finished
in mid December and the volunteers involved found the course to be very informative
and enjoyable. It is hoped to have the volunteers working alongside the nursing
teams from late February and we hope to run another course later in the year.
We have welcomed two Volunteer Drivers, John and David, who are helping
Iain Rennie by collecting and delivering goods to, from and between our shops
and offices which has been a major help, it is now hard to imagine how we managed
without them.
The Home Volunteer Programme has now been running for just
over two and a half years and our team of Home Volunteers have been able to
offer respite sits, social contact and driving for our patients and families.
We are one of the first hospices to offer Home Volunteers and, as such, are
often asked to advise other hospices that are starting similar initiatives.
We are currently reviewing the programme to see how it can be improved for the
patients, their families and the volunteers and a new training course is starting
on February 11th 2002.
Volunteer Help Needed
We are currently looking for someone to help transport coins (which can often
be quite heavy) from flag days and home box collections to the bank. This will
probably be for approximately one hour a week on a Monday or Thursday morning
in Tring.
We still need volunteer Receptionists for Wednesday afternoons at our
Tring office to be the first point of contact for any visitors and to answer
our incoming administration and nursing telephone lines.
"Hidden Treasures" - click here for information about our 2001
Volunteers Conference
Dates for Volunteers' Diaries
Friday 22nd February - Volunteers & Staff Quiz Night at the Misbourne
School, Great Missenden.
Wednesday 12th June - Volunteers' Outing to Warwick and Stratford upon Avon
After several requests, this year we will be running a trip to Warwick Castle
and Stratford upon Avon. There will be two options on the day; you can choose
to have a day exploring the historic town of Stratford or visit Warwick Castle.
Further details will be available nearer the time, if you'd like to know more
now please contact Emily Smith.
If you would like more information about any of the Volunteer opportunities
detailed above, please contact Voluntary Services Manager, Emily Smith
on 01494 713888 or Email esmith@irhh.org.
