Hauora Tairāwhiti and Hospice Tairāwhiti signed a 35-year land lease last week for the construction of a new Hospice facility which will help to take palliative care services to a new level of excellence.
The new building will be built on Gisborne Hospital grounds and will be the base for the 200+ volunteers and the significant community-based service, which includes doctors, nurses and allied health staff.
For the past 27 years Hospice has been operating out of a small building on the hospital grounds - a building that is no longer large enough to house the increasing staff numbers, does not have the space for patients and families to visit, and more importantly, is restricting the potential to grow the services Hospice could offer to the community.
Barbara Grout, General Manager Hospice Tairāwhiti is looking forward to the project moving forward. “We have completed the ground testing, finalised our building design and the plans are currently out with a quantity surveyor to estimate the build cost. We can then begin the process of grant applications and raising funds from the community.
“We want the hospice to be a building at the heart of our community, we want it to be visible and vibrant. Hospice is an organisation that celebrates life and we want our building to reflect that.”
The project also aims to change people’s perceptions: “This project will help us take our palliative care services to a new level of excellence, but we hope it will also help us change people’s perceptions about death and dying. We don’t want dying to be a hushed subject, but rather something that is talked about, understood and regarded as a stage of life that is just as important as all the other stages.”
The leasing approval process started in 2016 and has involved countless Board papers and Ministry discussions, all focussed on the ensuring the best outcome for our community. Hauora Tairāwhiti Chief Financial Officer Craig Green said “The Hauora Tairāwhiti Board and management are delighted to see the brand new Hospice facility being built on the Gisborne Hospital campus and cementing our relationship with Hospice Tairāwhiti for years to come.”
To learn more about Hospice Tairāwhiti and/or to contribute to the new building, see www.hospicetairawhiti.org.nz.