Total Deaths To Increase By 159% Over The Next 20 Years

World Hospice and Palliative Care Day (WHPCD) is
a unified day of action held every second Saturday in
October to celebrate and support hospice and palliative care
around the world.

WHPCD 2022 will be a day
where communities and healthcare providers unite and raise
their voices to advocate for policies and programs that
support the grief and bereavement needs of patients and
whanau. This year’s theme is “Healing Hearts
and Communities.”

The experience of
grief and the need to heal, unite people globally. Millions
of families and caregivers are grieving the death of family
and friends while experiencing social isolation.

In
New Zealand a recent study has shown that between 2021 –
2043 it is projected total deaths will increase by 159% and
the total number of people using hospice by 136%. New
Zealand’s population is ageing which means more people
will die when they are older.

As a consequence, people
are likely to experience longer periods of illness as they
approach end of life. And because the current health system
does not prioritise referrals to hospice, many health
organisations are providing what palliative care they can
when specialist hospice care is not available.

Mercy
Hospice Medical Director, Dr Pam Jennings says that the
burden of severe illness and health related suffering, and
the corresponding need for palliative care, are immense. Yet
palliative care is still not accessible to most people in
need, especially in low and middle-income
communities.

“Everyone living with life-limiting
illnesses regardless of their ethnicity, beliefs, cultural
background, disabilities, orientation or social status,
deserve the highest levels of compassion, dignity and
specialist care, and Mercy Hospice continues to deliver this
specialist care 24/7 through our dedicated and committed
team of nurses, doctors, social workers and councillors”,
continued Dr Jennings.

“Now, due to the impact of
the COVID-19, hospices around New Zealand, including Mercy
Hospice, have a bigger gap between funding and operating
costs, making us more reliant than ever on generous
community support. We provide our services for free, but we
can’t sustain this without our supporters”, said Dr
Jennings.

Palliative care is an important healthcare
specialty providing holistic end of life care right through
the dying process, and with a rapidly ageing population, the
need for palliative care services is quickly growing. As the
need for palliative care increases exponentially but
receives less funding, Mercy Hospice also needs support to
continue its service to the Auckland community.

All
services through Mercy Hospice are offered free to patients
and their families, regardless of age, ethnicity, means or
religion, thanks to the generosity of our
community.

Together, we can do much to change our
response by ensuring we can provide palliative care to
anybody, anywhere within our community.

Please join
us. Together we can bring palliative care to
everyone.

Mercy Hospice receives support through
shopping at our retail shops or donating at www.mercyhospice.co.nz.

© Scoop Media