Laurie Evans from Heathfield is staying on the Inpatient Unit. His wife Lizzy and two dogs, Daisy and Archie, are regular visitors. Laurie, who has three sons, met Lizzy when they worked for the Foreign Office. We chatted with the couple to find out about their experience of the hospice.

“Laurie had successful bowel cancer surgery five years ago, although it has caused long-standing complications,” Lizzy explained. “However, for the past year his health has gone downhill due to acute pancreatitis. This caused him to develop sepsis, and extreme damage to his pancreas. He also has the added complication of Type 2 diabetes.

“He’s been on the Inpatient Unit to try to stabilise his symptoms, but that’s not proved to be possible yet, despite the best efforts of everybody. We’re changing his medication and still hope to resolve things. You can’t ask for more constructive support and help. The hospice staff never give up, which makes it easier to bear, because you’re not on your own,” Lizzy said.

Laurie describes St Wilfrid’s as being “everything – the Ritz of the medical accommodation I’ve had. But it’s not just the facilities, it’s the fact that it is geared up to help people who are in tricky situations. It’s not easy, but this place makes it easier. The Nurses, particularly, are really obliging. They know their stuff, they’re nice – and good fun,” he said.

Lizzy added: “The hospice makes it easier for me. The fact that I can bring the dogs in means I’m not feeling guilty that they’re stuck at home. It’s also good company for Laurie. The dogs are popular with the staff and having them here makes it more ‘homely’ for Laurie. It’s as good as it can be under the circumstances.

“Everything from the Nurses, Doctors and Health Care Assistants, to the lovely ladies and gents that volunteer with the food trolley, make the hospice what it is. It’s the flowers when you walk in, it’s the people who welcome you, and for a place that invariably includes sadness, it doesn’t feel sad. You don’t dread coming in. I think a lot of people do, because the minute you say the words hospice or palliative, they freak. But St Wilfrid’s feels welcoming and happy.

“It takes a special person to work in a hospice because you’re dealing with circumstances very often which are horrid, or sad, or both. And I think you’d have to be a very robust or strong person mentally not to see all the sadness all the time, but to see the positivity that this place attracts or provides,” Lizzy said.

Lizzy is also grateful to our Counselling Team, after having six counselling sessions. “It was very timely because it was just after Laurie was admitted. My counsellor, Jo, offered a helpful, neutral space to help me get my head around everything. She’s not there to help answer your questions, she’s there to help you identify where you have something you want to flesh out, and help you identify for yourself how you address it. I found it very useful. Jo’s professionalism and kindness was so helpful.

“It’s for all these reasons that our son, Bryn, is running the Eastbourne Half Marathon in aid of St Wilfrid’s. He wants to raise money and say thank you to the hospice for the wonderful care they are giving Laurie. His original target was £1,000 but he’s already raised over £4,400 – and we’re hoping to raise even more,” Lizzy said.

The final word must go to Laurie. “The hospice setting is glorious. They put a bird feeder just outside my window so I can lie here and watch something good. Occasionally we see the woodpeckers, but most days we see the tits and squirrels, which the dogs are obsessed by. If you have to be ill and stuck in bed, then the hospice isn’t a bad place to be.”

Pictured: Laurie, Lizzy, Daisy and Archie