The widow of one of Scotland’s longest-serving teachers has joined the fight to save a Fife hospice.
Trish Nolan fears she would have missed husband John’s last breath if he had spent his final days in Victoria Hospice in Kirkcaldy rather than Dunfermline.
John, a respected German teacher for 51 years, died last June at the age of 71.
His death followed a career based at St Columba’s High in Dunfermline, Strathallan School near Perth, and Dundee High School.
Trish and other family members were by his side during his final moments at Queen Margaret Hospice.
However Trish, from Dunfermline, said: “I got a call from my son to come in at 2am because he thought something had changed.
“The staff acknowledged the end was near at 3.40am and he died 10 minutes later.
“I just thank God he wasn’t in Kirkcaldy as it would have taken me an extra 20 minutes to get there.
“And if I’d waited for staff to call, I wouldn’t have been there on time.”
The 64-year-old is one of almost 2,000 people who have signed a petition calling for the Dunfermline hospice to be saved.
‘It’s not like getting a bus to the cinema’
Trish said it was vital the public was given a say during the ongoing review of the future of palliative care in Fife.
“You’ve got to experience this to truly understand what end of life care means,” she said.
“It’s not just that you’re going to lose somebody you love. You’re going to lose them and the environment will be your memory.
“The travelling is enormous, especially for those who don’t drive. It’s not like getting a bus to the cinema.
“It’s a time of high stress and you’re feeling vulnerable and emotional.
“People will end up not getting that precious time with their loved one. It’s inhumane.
“There needs to be a public consultation and the health board needs to be honest about what’s happening.”
No public consultation despite concerns
While NHS Fife insists no final decision has been made, the Dunfermline hospice closed at the start of February and all hospice care is provided in Kirkcaldy.
Health chiefs say this is because more people are choosing to receive end of life care at home.
However Trish said: “At the moment there are nine hospice beds in Kirkcaldy for the whole of Fife.
“Many people want to die at home but some do not. I wanted John at home but there was no time to plan for that.
“There has been no public consultation whatsoever and people are quite concerned.”
Closing Dunfermline hospice ‘by stealth’
Trish is the second Fife widow to call for the retention of the hospice at Dunfermline’s Queen Margaret Hospital.
In March, Mary Green from Markinch said she would never have coped without the care provided to husband Ralph in his final days.
She said: “Home care is wonderful for some people but it does not work for everyone.”
Mid Scotland and Fife Labour MSP Claire Baker set up the petition just over a month ago amid fears the Dunfermline hospice had been closed “by stealth”.
She said: “They are not being open and transparent. Services don’t tend to reopen once they’re shut.”
‘Sustained reduction in demand for in-patient care’
Health chiefs say there has been a sustained reduction in demand for in-patient hospice care, with more people opting to be cared for at home.
Work to determine the long-term future of in-patient end-of-life care is ongoing, they said.
And proposals will be put before the board later this year.
Lynne Garvey, head of community care services with Fife Health and Social Care Partnership, said the model of one in-patient hospice, adopted at the start of Covid, was still in place.
And more patients are being cared for in their own homes.
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