Hospice information for in-patients Information for you and your family if you are staying at our hospice

Welcome to the Marie Curie Hospice, Liverpool We have put together this folder to provide you and your family with information about our hospice facilities and services, and other information we think you might find useful. If there’s anything we can help you with, please let us know. We aim to make sure you have a comfortable stay with us, and that we do all we can to meet your needs.

Diane Barker, Hospice Manager

Marie Curie Hospice, Liverpool Speke Road, Woolton, Liverpool L25 8QA

Reception: 0151 801 1401 Sefton Ward: 0151 801 1420 Stanley Ward: 0151 801 1430 Email: [email protected] mariecurie.org.uk/liverpool

Hospice information for in-patients

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Hospice information for in-patients Information for you and your family if you are staying at our hospice

Contents • Your room

3

• Food and drink

6

• Medication

7

• Information for visitors

7

• Preventing infections and how you can help

9

• Services at our hospice

10

• Sources of health information and further support

12

• General information

13

• Tell us what you think

14

• About Marie Curie Cancer Care

15

• Supporting our work

16

• List of TV channels and radio stations

17

Hospice information for in-patients

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Your room Your bed Our nursing staff will explain how your bed’s control buttons work. We want you to be as comfortable as possible so just ask us if you need extra blankets, duvets or pillows. Call bell The call bell lets our staff know that you need help. To activate it, press the orange button on the handset located by your bed and a nurse will be with you shortly. Light switches There are light switches by the door. Handrails There are handrails to help you move around the bathroom and when using the toilet. We also have handrails along the ward corridors and in the outpatient department. Wardrobe/bedside locker You can store your belongings such as toiletries, nightwear, underwear, non-slip slippers and day clothes in the wardrobe/bedside locker. We will provide you with fresh towels. Laundry Please ask your relatives or friends to take your laundry home. In certain circumstances, we can arrange to have items washed for you.

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Mobile phone You can use your mobile phone – however, reception is limited inside our hospice building. We just ask that you are considerate of other patients and visitors when using your phone, and that you keep your phone on the silent mode. Newspapers Newspapers are available on request – just ask us. Entertainment If your bedroom has a TV, please see page 17 for the TV channels and radio stations guide. We also have a small selection of books available from reception. Please ask us for help. Internet access Wi-Fi is not available at the hospice. However, we can provide internet access via a cable connection – please ask us if you would like to use it. Accessing our garden There are doors in some rooms that open out into the garden – opening these doors may activate our security alarm. If you wish to go outside, we have two internal courtyards for your use. Smoking We have a smoke-free policy at our hospice. However we recognise that some patients and their visitors may wish to smoke and we will try to make this possible where reasonable. Our staff can direct those wishing to smoke to a designated smoking area, as detailed below. If you wish to smoke, please make sure you follow the guidance below: • Smoking is not allowed inside, or in front of, our hospice at any time. • Any person who wishes to smoke may do so only if it does not cause discomfort to other patients, visitors or staff members. • Our staff members are unable to accompany patients who wish to smoke. Patients and visitors who follow the guidance above can smoke in the locations and at the times indicated on the next page. Hospice information for in-patients

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Between 9am and 9pm • April to October: You may use the smoking shelter in the visitors’ car park. • November to March: You may use the Sefton courtyard. Between 9pm and 9am: Please use the Sefton courtyard. Fire alarm We test the fire alarm every Wednesday at 11am. If you hear the alarm, please wait for instructions. Valuables As we cannot take responsibility for the loss or damage of your valuables, we ask that you do not bring them with you to the hospice. If you have any valuables with you, a member of our nursing staff can lock them away during your stay. Maintenance faults Please report any room or equipment faults to us. Electrical items If you bring any electrical items with you, please let us know. We will arrange for a member of our maintenance team to test these items for electrical safety.

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Food and drink Meal times Breakfast:

8am – 8.30am, or upon waking up

Lunch:

12 noon – 1pm

Evening meal:

5.30pm – 6pm All food served at our hospice is freshly prepared and cooked by our in-house chef. We try to offer a wide choice on our menu. Please let us know if you have any special requests or dietary requirements, or would like to order food outside of our meal times.

You can eat your meals in your room. If your visitors would like to dine with you, they can order food with us in advance for a small charge. If your relatives or friends wish to bring food for you, please check with our staff. For health and safety reasons, we need to ensure that the food your visitors bring for you can be stored and eaten safely.

Refreshments During the day, our hospice volunteers and housekeeping staff will provide you with hot drinks and water. If you would like a soft drink or chocolate, we have vending machines located near the reception area that you can use at any time.

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Medication We want you to be as comfortable as possible at all times during your stay with us. Please make sure you bring with you all the medication that you are currently taking, and let our staff know. Should you need additional medication to manage symptoms such as pain, we are able to provide them to you to help you feel more comfortable. Our regular medication rounds begin at around: • 8am • 12 noon • 5pm • 9.30pm

Information for visitors Our visiting times are flexible and we want family and friends to feel they are welcome to visit our hospice at any time. However, we are also mindful that many visitors and late visits can be tiring for our patients. We ask that you let us know if someone will be visiting you particularly early or late. You may also wish to have some time on your own – just let us know and we will inform reception. Your visitors can visit you in your room. You are also welcome to use one of the lounges, family room, quiet room or gardens. If you wish to leave our hospice to go out for a short time, please let us know. Hospice information for in-patients

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Children Children are welcome in our hospice. We ask that they are supervised at all times. Please note that we have a pond in our gardens. Pets If you would like your visitor to bring in a pet, please check with us and we will try to accommodate whenever possible. Smoking We have a smoke-free policy inside our hospice building. For information on our designated smoking area, see page 4. Parking Free parking is available in the hospice grounds. If the hospice car park is full, you can find additional parking on High Street which is just across the road from the hospice. Staying over Your family member or carer is welcome to stay overnight. Although we have a limited number of visitor beds, we will try our best to accommodate guests whenever possible. Toilets and shower Toilets for visitors can be found on the ground floor, near reception and the lifts. A shower for visitors’ use is located in the overnight stay room. Transport links to the hospice The nearest train station is Hunts Cross (a mile from the hospice). Buses 74, 75 and 76 run from Paradise Street bus station, Liverpool city centre (78 from Queens Square). Buses 78, 76a, 75e and 77 run on Sundays. The nearest bus stops are on Woolton Street or High Street. Local taxi numbers: Alpha Cabs Mersey Cabs Village Cabs

0151 486 8797 0151 733 3393 (wheelchair accessible) 0151 487 7900

Local amenities If your visitor would like information about local amenities such as a bank, pharmacy or florist, please ask at reception for details. Hospice information for in-patients

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Preventing infections and how you can help You and your visitors can help us prevent infections by following the guidance below. This is really important – our patients’ ability to fight infection is very much reduced, so even minor infections can seriously affect them. If you have an infection such as a cold or flu, our nursing staff will discuss additional requirements with your visitors. This is to make sure that the infection is not spread to them or carried outside of the hospice.

What you can do • The key to infection prevention is for you and your visitors to clean your hands regularly (particularly after using the toilet and before eating). Ask your visitors to clean their hands before entering the ward. Hand sanitisers are available outside the entrances to the ward, by each room/bay area and near the outpatient department entrance as well as by your bed, for use when people enter and leave your room. • If you have a wound or device fitted (such as a drip or catheter), please avoid touching it. If you do, make sure you wash your hands before and after doing so. • Use tissues if you have a runny nose or when sneezing, and remember to cover your mouth when coughing. • If your friends and relatives are unwell, ask them, if possible, to wait until they are well to visit you. • Do not share any equipment with other patients unless it is cleaned before and after use.

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Services at our hospice The Marie Curie Hospice, Liverpool provides specialist care, support and advice to help you live with your illness and give you the best quality of life. We also offer emotional and practical support to your family and carer. All our services are free of charge to patients, families and carers.

Our hospice team Our team is experienced in caring for people who are seriously ill. They can help in many different ways to meet your individual needs – from relieving pain and improving your ability to move around, to providing advice and support on emotional, practical or spiritual issues. Many of our staff members wear a uniform, and you can identify them by the type they are wearing: • Clinical nurse manager

Navy blue tunic

• Sisters

Navy blue tunic

• Staff nurses

Blue and white striped tunic

• Healthcare assistants

Mauve and white tunic

• Physiotherapists

White tunic and navy trousers

• Occupational therapists

White tunic and green trousers

• Maintenance team

White shirt and blue trousers

• Housekeeping team

Pale green tunic

• Chefs

White tops and checked trousers

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How we can help Nurses: A dedicated nursing team will be responsible for your care, during the day and at night. Doctors: Our doctors are based at the hospice and will see you on a daily basis. Physiotherapy: Physiotherapy can help you to move around and stay as active and independent as possible. This may involve strengthening your muscles to help you to walk, or exercises to reduce shortness of breath. We can also arrange walking aids and other equipment to help you get around. Occupational therapy: Occupational therapy can help you to maintain and manage everyday activities. Our occupational therapist will find out which activities are priorities for you, and work with you to find ways to achieve or adapt them. Social and psychological support: Our counsellor offers emotional and psychological support – someone you can talk to about your illness, concerns and feelings. Our social workers can provide information such as entitlement to benefits or other services that you might need. Chaplaincy and spiritual support: Our chaplain provides pastoral, emotional, spiritual and religious support to people of any faith, or none. We can also arrange for someone from your own faith to visit you. We have a multi-faith room for you to use for prayer or reflection. Complementary therapies: We offer a range of therapies including aromatherapy; Indian head massage; gentle and remedial massage; reflexology; and relaxation. Other services: We can book an appointment for you with a hairdresser, optician, chiropodist or dentist.

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Services for your family and those caring for you • Drop-in support for carers: If your carer needs someone to talk to, they can drop by our hospice to speak to a member of our staff. •

Bereavement support: Our patient and family support team offers one-to-one emotional support to family members (including children and young people) and carers.

For information about other Marie Curie services in your area, such as the Marie Curie Helper service or the Marie Curie Nursing Service, please ask a member of staff. Read about these services on page 15.

Sources of health information and further support Useful publications We have a range of Marie Curie information leaflets and booklets that you might find helpful. They are available at our hospice information points located in the main reception area and the outpatient department. Our publications include health information leaflets covering subjects such as loss of appetite, fatigue, exercise and relaxation. We also have a selection of publications focusing on the emotional and practical aspects of end of life care and bereavement. Online resources at mariecurie.org.uk/patientsandcarers On Marie Curie’s website, you will find: • information about our services • advice, support and publications for you and your carer • instructional film guides to help the person who is caring for you • links to other support and organisations Hospice information for in-patients

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General information Advanced life support We do not have the specialist equipment to offer advanced life support for anyone whose heart stops suddenly (in a cardiac arrest). If you have any questions or concerns about this, please ask your doctor or nurse.

Volunteers Our hospice relies on a dedicated team of volunteers who help out with a number of our services. You may see them at our reception desk, helping out at meal times or offering refreshments to patients and their visitors. Our hospice volunteers are bound by the same professional and organisational standards as Marie Curie employees, and they will be happy to assist you within their agreed roles.

Keeping your information confidential and safe Your health records are used as a guide to help us to plan and provide you with the highest quality care. We get information about you from your NHS healthcare team – your district nurse, GP or consultant – when you are referred to our hospice, or directly from you. The Data Protection Act 1998 and the NHS Confidentiality Code of Practice control the way we use your personal information. We have robust processes in place to ensure your information is secure. Sometimes we may need to share information about you with other agencies or individuals so that we can work together for your benefit. We will always seek your consent to share information about you where the law requires us to. Anyone who receives information about you from us is also under an obligation to keep it secure. We will also respect any instructions you give us not to share your information, although this might affect your care. If you would like to access your own health records, or know more about how we use your information and your rights under the Data Protection Act, please ask us. Hospice information for in-patients

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Taking part in research projects We want to make sure that our patients and their families receive the best possible care and support from us. Carrying out research is one way to help us understand the needs of patients and families, and how we can best meet those needs. From time to time, we invite patients and families we are caring for to be involved in research studies. If you are interested in taking part, please let us know.

Tell us what you think We hope you are satisfied with the care that you have been receiving from us. We value your comments and suggestions on any aspect of it. We want to know where we are getting things right, and what we need to improve on. We regularly display comments and suggestions that we receive on notice boards around our hospice, along with changes we have made as a result of feedback we get. You can provide us with feedback by: • completing our hospice comments card – available in your room or from a member of staff • filling in our online survey at mariecurie.org.uk/telluswhatyouthink While we will always try to do our best to meet your needs, we know that sometimes things can go wrong. If you have a complaint, please follow the steps in our leaflet, Tell us what you think – available from a member of staff or at our information points in the main reception area and the outpatient department. If you are particularly happy with the support you have received from our hospice and would like to share your experience with others to help promote Marie Curie’s work, please let us know. Email us at:

[email protected]

Or write to us:

Case study team, Communications department Marie Curie Cancer Care 6th Floor, 89 Albert Embankment, London SE1 7TP

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About Marie Curie Cancer Care Given the choice, most of us would want to be cared for at home or in a hospice if we were seriously ill. Marie Curie Cancer Care makes this possible. Marie Curie Hospices The nine Marie Curie Hospices provide free specialist medical care, therapies and support to patients, carers and families. Each hospice offers a range of services to help people who are seriously ill to live with their illness, giving them the best quality of life. Our hospices are in Belfast, Bradford, Cardiff and the Vale (Penarth) Edinburgh, Glasgow, Hampstead (London), Liverpool, Newcastle and West Midlands (Solihull). Marie Curie Nursing Service Working across the UK, Marie Curie Nurses give free hands-on care to people with any serious illness in their own home, and vital emotional support to those caring for them. Our nurses help people to manage difficulties such as pain or nausea, making sure that they are as comfortable as possible in their own home. The care they provide also enables carers to get a good night’s sleep or a break during the day. Marie Curie Helper service In some areas, Marie Curie offers people with any serious illness and their families a one-to-one support service. The Marie Curie Helper service is provided by trained volunteers who visit people in their homes to offer companionship and support for up to three hours each week, free of charge. Ask a member of our staff about the Helper service in Liverpool. You can also contact the service manager directly. Phone 0845 634 9813 (9am-5pm, Monday to Friday) or email [email protected]

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Marie Curie research Marie Curie is a leader in research into the best ways of caring for people with serious illnesses. We have our own research teams and we fund external research programmes. If you are interested in taking part in a research project, please see page 14.

Supporting our work Marie Curie’s services are always free to patients and their families, and we rely on the generous support of the public to continue providing our services. It costs around £16,000 to run our hospice for one day. There are many ways that you, or your family and friends, can get involved and support us when the time is right. Our notice board in the reception area has lots of information about local fundraising and volunteering opportunities. Our fundraising team based here at the hospice would also be delighted to meet you if you are interested in supporting us in any way. You can contact the Marie Curie Hospice, Liverpool fundraising team on 0151 801 1411. You can also find out more from our website: mariecurie.org.uk/liverpool

This information folder was last updated by Marie Curie Cancer Care in October 2013 with input from our hospice clinicians as well as carers who have looked after someone who is seriously ill.

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TV STATIONS

CHANNEL NUMBER

TV STATIONS

CHANNEL NUMBER

BBC1

1

BBC PARLIAMENT

BBC2

2

SKY NEWS

ITV1

3

RUSSIA TODAY

42

CHANNEL 4

4

AL JAZEERA ENGLISH

43

BBC RED BUTTON

44

CHANNEL 5

41 7

5

ITV 2

11

BBC THREE

12

BBC FOUR

13

BBC ALBA

45

ITV 3

14

MCCC Nature Cam

46

PICK TV

15

YESTERDAY

16

CHANNEL 4+1

17

MORE 4

18

FILM 4

10

RADIO CHANNELS

QVC

19

BBC RADIO 1

71

4 MUSIC

20

BBC RADIO 1 EXTRA

70

DAVE

21

BBC RADIO 2

69

REALLY

22

BBC RADIO 3

68

VIVA

23

BBC RADIO 4

67

IDEAL WORLD

24

66

BID TV

25

BBC RADIO 5 LIVE BBC RADIO 5 SPORTS EXTRA

62

ITV 4

26

BBC RADIO 6

50

ITV2+1

27

63

E4

28

BBC RADIO 4 EXTRA BBC RADIO ASIAN NETWORK

E4 +1

29

BBC WORLD SERVICE

61

FIVE*

30

THE HITS RADIO

60

5 USA

31

SMASH HITS

59

THE BIG DEAL

32

KISS

58

ITV1 +1 CREATE AND CRAFT

33

HEAT

57

34

MAGIC

56

PRICE DROP

35

Q

55

QUEST

36

SMOOTH RADIO

54

CHANNEL 5 +1

37

KERRANG!

53

CHALLENGE

38

TALK SPORT

52

FOOD NETWORK

39

51

CHANNEL NUMBER

65

CBBC

8

CAPITAL FM PREMIER CHRISTIAN RADIO

CBEEBIES

9

U105

49

ABSOLUTE RADIO

48

HEART FM

47

CITV BBC NEWS

40 6

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