Credit: The Northern Echo, Friday 3rd February 2023

North East Hospices will be forced to close without urgent funding with current services 'not sustainable' due to rising costs.

'Help us before it is too late' - pleas from North East Hospices

David Smith, Chief Executive of Teesside Hospice and St Theresa's Darlington Hospice. said charities are "unable to meet the ever-rising costs of specialist hospice care."

North East Hospices will be forced to close without urgent funding, bosses last night warned, with current services 'not sustainable' due to rising costs. David Smith said his charities are now "unable to meet the ever-rising costs of the specialist hospice care" and called for immediate help "before it's too late and hospice services are forced to reduce or close."

Earlier this week, he met with MPs in the Tees Valley who have joined with providers of palliative care in the region to address the concerns to stop hospices having to deal with "a financial cliff edge." Mr Smith said Teesside Hospice is now facing a fundraising deficit of £150,000. Every day, they need to raise £5,500 to provide vital care services to those with terminal illnesses across our region.

It comes after the leaders of the 12 independent charities in the North East and North Cumbria forecast spending an extra £1m on energy bills in the next 12 months, at a time when they are already under pressure from other rising costs. They also feared the strain on family budgets will mean donations will drop, leading them to issue and urgent call for ministers to provide them with financial support so they can continue to provide their vital end-of-life care services.

David Smith said "Good quality, holistic hospice care makes a tremendous difference to individuals and who families during some of the most difficult and traumatic times imaginable. Despite the enduring and generous support of our communities, our charities are now unable to meet the ever-rising costs of the specialist hospice care. With much of our working being done on behalf of and in partnership with the NHS, we urgently need our local NHS commissioners to follow their own national funding guidance before it's too late and hospice services are forced to reduce or close. We hope the unified and robust support from all of the Tees Valley MP's will raise awareness of the precarious position we are in and focus minds on finding a solution before it's too late."

Hospices have previously warned fears about the costs of staying warm and running vital medical equipment will see many patients either continuing to receive care at home but with the added stress of worrying about their energy bills or, alternatively, not having a choice about where they die. At the same time, the costs of hospice care itself are set to increase significantly. Already, the 12 North East and Cumbria independent hospices must raise a total of more than £31m each year in order to keep their services free and available.

Darlington MP Peter Gibson, hosted a meeting in Parliament this week alongside Parliamentary colleagues and bosses of Tees Valley Hospices to discuss the provision of palliative care. While MPs attending included Jill Mortimer for Hartlepool, Jacob Young MP for Redcar, Paul Howell MP for Sedgefield, and Andy McDonald MP for Middlesbrough, representatives from the Offices of Simon Clarke MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, Matt Vickers MP for Stockton South and Alex Cunningham MP for Stockton North were also present.

Mr Gibson said: "This is not a party-political issue, and i was delighted that all Tees Valley MPs chose to play a part in this meeting. We will continue working together on this to ensure all of the Tees Valley has access to the palliative care everyone deserves." 

Mr McDonald said "The Integrated Care Board (ICB) now have to provide for palliative care and I, along with other Teesside MPs, will be writing to the ICB for an explanation as to why they are not resourcing palliative care in the way that was expected."