2 August 2017
www.islandhospice.org.uk
Introduction
The Island UK Trust provided funds to Island Zimbabwe to establish a nursing agency and strengthen the M&E department. The following reports the impact of these investments.
Nursing Agency
Seed funding amounting to $10,000 was provided by the Trust to develop a nursing agency as part of a social enterprise initiative. As at 1 August 2017, the agency provided services to a total 52 patients and generates on average $1,000 a month for operational costs. Island plans to expand the agency to other geographic locations within Zimbabwe. Clients say:
“The nurse has been such a help and we really appreciate that my sister is able to walk now and can do a lot more stuff by herself.”
“The nurse is fabulous; my dad loves him so much. He looks forward to his coming and wishes he lived with us. He is an amazing carer.”
Strengthening M&E
Through the UK Trust’s investment of $6,000 Island was able to top up the salary of the Monitoring, Evaluation & Research Officer (MER) position and recruit a skilled candidate. The incumbent over a period of 6 months improved the quality of data such that Island is moving to measuring the outcomes of the care it delivers. This is imperative to providing quality care & generating support from donors. The improvement in MER meant that Island was ready to receive training from Dr Richard Harding (left), Reader in Palliative Care at the Cicely Saunders Institute at Kings College London. Dr Harding visited Zimbabwe in 2017 and trained Island staff and partners on the palliative care outcome scale (POS). Island will be piloting the first Integrated African Palliative Care Outcome Scale with Dr Harding. See here for more: New integrated African Palliative Care Outcomes Scale to be developed in Zimbabwe
”it was a pleasure to visit Africa’s first hospice, and to see the work of Dame Cicely continuing in the world. I was impressed by Island’s commitment to quality and their focus on measuring the outcomes of the care that they deliver” – Dr Harding
Island Hospice and Healthcare are extremely grateful for the support that it has receved from St John’s and should any parishioners ever be in Zimbabwe they are most welcome to visit the Hospice facility in Harare.
Island UK Trust Report
Alan and Marilyn Brooks