Editorial: The success that is hospice

OPINION: You matter because of who you are. You matter to the last moment of your life, and we will do all we can, not only to help you die peacefully, but also to live until you die.

They are the words of the founder of the hospice movement, Dame Cicely Saunders who died in a south London, England, hospice just five years ago aged 87, and they were quoted this week by the Health Minister Tony Ryall when he opened Perry House, the third stage of Hamilton's new hospice.

The newest addition to the complex, the Hillcrest Motor Lodge in a previous life, gives the hospice a 10-bed inpatient unit, six of which are ready for use.

This and the already open administration block and children and teenagers' block called Rainbow Place make up an $8 million care centre for the terminally ill in the Waikato – built for $7 million.

It is a wonderful asset and it will make the final days of many lives more comfortable for patients and families who make use of the free facility.

The difference between what the Gallagher Family Hospice cost and what was paid to build it is a tribute to the level of support given to the four-year Cobham Dr project, which opened debt-free.

Such was the energy put into encouraging people to back it, there was some criticism that it absorbed funds which might have gone to other worthy appeals.

A little under four years ago the Waikato Times reported there was no hospice in the Waikato, save for four beds at a Hamilton East rest home, and the people of the Waikato were being asked to donate the necessary $7m to build one.

"No one should be under any illusion that is a hugely ambitious sum," we reported the day after the campaign was officially launched.

By then almost half the required money had been raised thanks to help from charitable trusts, commercial organisations, sponsorship deals and individuals.

Many of those, people and companies who for years have been cornerstones of support for the Hamilton community, were acknowledged this week.

Their names and logos adorn the buildings and a main outside wall of the hospice. The Waikato is privileged to have such people and organisations whose generosity enables projects like the new hospice to be completed.

This week's opening was also a tribute to the work and donations of the wider community, individuals and groups who donated time and effort for fund raising events.

Hospice Waikato this week, in the words of chief executive Elizabeth Bang, realised the "dreams of so many". It will continue to rely on the support of the Waikato public.

While the service it provides is free, it still has to be paid for. That will involve raising $1.3 million a year to cover running expenses and employing six registered nurses and six health care assistants at the complex.

It's a huge ask, but Hamilton and the Waikato have done it before. The elements – a highly competent administration and a highly supportive community – are already in place.

- © Fairfax NZ News