Each and every member of our team of staff and volunteers is a key part in ensuring that patients, and their families, receive the care that is right for them, and that it is delivered in a setting of their choosing.
We are so much more than a building, albeit a very special one, and last year we were proud to rollout our new look name and brand, which helped us spread this message. The result of sessions with, and thoughts from, volunteers, patients, service users and supporters led to a shift in name to St Columba’s Hospice Care, and new brand colours alongside.
Although subtle, our change in name is important as it highlights a key part of our ongoing strategic developments. For some time we have considered how to best express our commitment to providing services in homes and community settings across our area. The addition of “care” to the end of our name shifts the focus away from us being about a building, and opens up discussions around what Hospice care is, and should be, and where it is best delivered. For many that is in the home, and for others it is in the Hospice, some of course may wish to make use of both community support and inpatient, or short stay, care.
Last year we made over 2,500 home visits to support people in their own communities, and alongside this the Hospice supported 434 admissions to our inpatient unit. We continued to grow and develop our support outside the building and our team of highly skilled professionals have been able to take the Hospice culture of person centred care into homes across Edinburgh and East Lothian.
As always, what we do simply would not be possible without the community around us that supports us in a variety of ways; from taking part in events, to volunteering time and experience, to shopping and donating in our shops, everything is appreciated and makes us the special part of the community we’ve been for over 40 years.
This year our donated funds, legacy gifts and overall income was up on the previous year, and it is only right to take this opportunity to thank each and every individual, group, business and supporter who made this possible. We have also reported a significant, planned deficit this year. Whilst on the face of it this deficit looks sizeable, and larger than originally expected, there are some key reasons for this. The Hospice has for many years provided, to some of its staff, pension benefits through participation in the Lothian Pension Fund, a final salary scheme. In common with many employers we concluded that the open-ended liability involved was a risk the Hospice should no longer run, particularly as we also offer our staff a good alternative defined contribution scheme. Therefore the Hospice made the difficult decision in 2019/20 to end our liability with the staff being offered membership of the defined contribution scheme, leading to significant costs of over £2 million. Another key reason out-with our control has been investment losses as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which came at the end of the 2019/20 financial year. What remains key, however, is that our day to day operational activity was about £500,000 better than budget. Our stable reserves and financial position, our commitment to use our reserves to forward the strategic aims of the Hospice, and a focus on ensuring a balanced income and expenditure budget is achieved over the coming years are part of our new strategy.
2019/20 finished in a way none of us could have predicted, with the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. The team in the Hospice moved quickly to ensure that our services remained firmly in place, and all of the necessary changes were implemented to create a safe environment for patients, families and staff. Unfortunately we had to stand our volunteers down, a difficult day for our volunteers as much as for our staff team.
Various aspects of our planned strategy became a reality far quicker than expected due to COVID-19, with services moving online, support being given over video conferencing and virtual consultations becoming a new normal. Staff moved to home working where possible and everyone across the Hospice rose to the challenge of this crisis.
At the time of writing we are all beginning to see a return to some of the things we used to take for granted; time with wider family members, the chance to catch up with friends, the possibility of travel beyond our own community. We’re also seeing steps in the right direction from a Hospice perspective; more families can now visit loved ones, our shops are getting set to re-open and our wonderful volunteers are starting to come back in some areas.
What strikes me is the sense of community that held strong, and strengthened, around the Hospice throughout such a challenging time. Below is a special picture, drawn for us by one of the local children in the area. We’ve had it displayed on the door of the Hospice throughout the pandemic – a wonderful sentiment that sums up why being part of our community is so very important to us all at St Columba’s Hospice Care.
Thank you for being part of what we do,
Dr Norval Bryson
Chairman
St Columba’s Hospice Care