Welcome to Kelly’s Blog

Kelly’s Blog Post #1

Howdy and welcome to my blog.

Kellys Blog – Welcome and thank you for joining me. March 2024 marks 10 years since Little Haven Palliative Care and Cancer Support took a chance on me and I began a career in Palliative Care. I knew within months that I had found my nursing niche.

Bronwyn McFarlane, Carolyn Mandersloot, Sally McDonald, Narelle Hosking, Gen Rickard and Kathy Sproxton. What an incredible embrace this was from which to toddle forward from. Sue Manton, Business Manager, Narelle Griffiths and Susan Smith in administration. What a feeling of security I felt knowing that the home fires and bean counting of this organisation were so meticulously tended day to day. Integrity and compassion shone from the heart of every person I encountered.

In that first year I felt as though my blessings grew tenfold month by month as I witnessed individuals from every walk of life walk through the door wanting to, in some way, contribute to this organisation that I had been allowed to become a part of. The endless steady stream of donations that came through that door was clearly given with the intent that this organisation would continue to carry palliative care into the homes of this community.

Motorcycle clubs, The Freemasons, School groups, local businesses, large and small, raffle runners, knitting and quilting circles, individuals, young and old, jam makers, fruit growers, clothing, books, bric a brac, valuable items and heirlooms, title deeds to a house (given, I might add, by a woman that had not accessed our service), estate bequeathments, cash donations ranging from silver change to five-digit figures. All of it conscientiously valued and turned into nursing hours, vehicles, fuel and resources that was then returned to the community as Gold Standard Palliative care.

The Volunteer network moved me deeply, and continues to do so. The raffles organised by Diane yield funds that any fledgling small business would be proud of! The transfer, storage and manual handling of items and goods that stocked the pop-up shops was an operation that astonished me. 10 years later The Little Haven Market Place is a business flourishing in tribute to the tireless efforts of these devoted soldiers of Little Havens need for funds.

The individuals that selflessly give their time and compassion to simply sit with a patient, carer or bereaved person, to take them to appointments or run errands for them, are surely societies greatest pride. They do this beneath the annex of Little Haven.

The co-ordination and devotion to recognising and rewarding this army of angels is an aspect of Little Havens business model that struck me as key to the organisation’s success. Connecting an entire community within the pursuit of quality home based Palliative Care has been something that will remain an aspect of my life that I will forever be infinitely proud to be associated with.

I remember the first AGM I attended 10 years ago. I was made aware that the financial tenure of Little Haven Palliative Care was reliant on the raising of over half a million dollars from this community and I was made equally aware of how this happened. I became aware of the work involved in securing grants. I was made aware of the extraordinary efforts involved in hosting fabulous fund-raising events. The funding at the time was less than $300,000 per year and expenses were more than $800,000 per year. I knew then that I was in the company of angels and of warriors! I cried on the way home.

I have cried a million tears since that first year with Little Haven. Some of them tears of grief as we witness the inevitable flicker of life’s light wink out of a patient with whom we have travelled for many months, occasionally even years, along their disease trajectory to End of Life. Sometimes fabulous tears of mirth in consult and debrief with the amazing group of women I am lucky enough to have as colleagues. Sometimes tears of anguish and frustration as we try to co-ordinate our community-based model of care with a Health System to which we are but a satellite.

Sometimes tears of relief and joy. These are my favourite tears. The ones that come when a family or familial group have astonished us with their resilience and bravery during a time of great hardship and loss and their loved one has passed at home, calm, comfortable and content in the care of their people. The gratitude that pours over us at these times is humbling, rewarding and cause for deep consideration.

There is a need for what we do. A need to ensure that we keep doing it and that it can keep being done. My goal with Kellys Blog is to share some of our work with you the reader.

Little Haven Palliative Care today runs a fleet of 6 vehicles with 14 nurses, 5 on the road every day. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. We currently have 130 palliative patients. We have 3 Social Workers supporting 200 Bereavement Clients. We’ve come a long way. But the model remains the same. Exquisite in his ability to meet the needs of a community yearning to support its people to die well and in choice.

Kellys Blog – Join me here each week and I’ll take you on and amazing journey. I’ll tell you some beautiful stories of how we’ve supported thousands of individuals and their loved ones to experience death in a positive way and how we do it.