Meeting of the Parliament 21 December 2023
I thank Bob Doris for bringing this important debate to the chamber.
Everyone deserves as pain-free and peaceful a death as possible, surrounded by those who love them, in a place that comforts them and in which the choice is theirs. We can all agree that, at some point, we will all be touched by the death of a loved one, and that, should that loved one need end-of-life care over a period of time—palliative care—we would all wish that to be provided in the best way possible, by trained and sensitive care staff, who, as Bob Doris indicated, are passionate about what they do and have the knowledge, time and training to support not only the physical side of our loved one’s deterioration but their emotional needs and those of the wider family.
As we have heard, since its inception in 1948, Marie Curie has developed to do just that. I welcome the commitment of Marie Curie to working with those at the end of life. Nowadays, Marie Curie works not only in hospices but in people’s homes, in our communities and with our NHS. My South Scotland region is served by NHS Ayrshire and Arran, NHS Borders and NHS Dumfries and Galloway. I know that patients and staff from all of those health boards hold that working relationship in high regard.
The report that others have mentioned talks about numbers of visits. In my region, in 2022-23, 59 people in NHS Ayrshire and Arran were seen, 95 people in NHS Borders were seen and there were more than 4,000 visits in NHS Dumfries and Galloway. Every number represents a person who may be in pain and feeling overwhelmed and lonely as they approach those last days of life. Like others in the chamber, I am thankful that we have a dedicated organisation such as Marie Curie, which does its best to provide visits to patients, often in very challenging circumstances.
I will raise three issues that have been touched on by others and that really struck me about the provision of end-of-life care and the provision of hospice care in 2023, as we go into 2024. We can all agree that it is valuable work and a service that we want to continue. For that to be a reality, we need to address the issue of funding. We have heard that statutory funding has not kept pace and that hospices across Scotland face a £16 million deficit. We need the Scottish Government to make clear what steps it can take to support the funding of hospices. That links to my next point, which is about staffing.
We all agree that hospice staff are trained to the highest level and need to be seen on a par with NHS colleagues.