For over 30 years, the Ayrshire Hospice has provided quality specialist palliative care for adults with life-limiting illnesses across Ayrshire and Arran.

The Hospice needs to recognise and respond to significant changes in the care environment if it is to succeed and survive in the future. Unless it adapts to these challenges, its contribution will diminish and its impact will be reduced.

A different set of conditions and related needs...

The population we serve are presenting with a different, higher and more expensive set of care demands with multiple co-morbidities and chronic conditions, including an increase in cases of cancers and dementia which will result in a greater need for hospice care.

The challenge of responding to the needs of people with dementia, in significantly higher numbers is not to be underestimated.

Increasing numbers of old people

The anticipated changes in the size and shape of the population will have a significant influence on the future of the Hospice. Scotland's population is continuing to age, with a 50% increase in over 60s projected by 2033.

There is a strong urban/rural dimension to the ageing population; while 17% of the population are over 60, this age group makes up 21% of the population in several rural local authorities. The implications of these statistics are significant.

30 years has brought changing social context

A changing social context will also post new challenges; more people will live alone and families will be more fragmented.

With the average family size expected to shrink and more people being in employment, there will be fewer people able to provide full-time care.

Complying with modern healthcare regulations

The last three decades have seen many significant changes to the standards governing the Hospice. The latest to impact follows the Healthcare Improvement Scotland Inspection Report in 2016, which highlighted the need to address urgent issues in our built environment, including the phasing out of shared rooms.

These must be dealt with as a matter of priority as they relate to patient privacy and dignity.

Safeguarding heritage

The is a healthcare and heritage project. This will be the first comprehensive, integrated redevelopment of our 'Category B' listed building in its 201-year history. The Hospice building has undergone extensions, improvements and redecoration over the years, the layout and in-build services have remained largely unchanged in the past 30 years.

Our In-Patient Unit has the facility to care for 20 patients in a mix of single, double or three-bedded rooms. Only 30% of our 20 beds give the ideal level of privacy and amenity for patients and their families. We know this is a real issue for them. Our bed in shared wards are impacting on privacy and comfort as well as restricting admissions due to gender mixing rules.

Patient rooms are beginning to feel old fashioned and clinical in appearance and also have mismatched soft furnishings and out-dated bathrooms. We have a beautiful garden area which is restricted and is inaccessible for bed access.

The equipment and facilities needed to deliver modern hospice care have considerable improved since we opened in 1989 and take up much more space. Developing the Hospice will allow us to stay in our current home; continue to care for the patients of Ayrshire and Arran and make our Hospice fit for the future.