A patient’s family member calls a hospice, and the hospice then opens a file for them. The hospice will check in with the family until the patient is ready to enter, often making a home visit to assess the situation. The idea behind the Townsend-Smith Hospice is “to provide individualized care based on trust, integrity, and personal choice offering physical, emotional, social, and spiritual support in a comfortable and compassionate environment,” Co-Founder Lynden Smith said. He has had two experiences with a hospice. His father-in-law spent weeks in a palliative care unit. “He was upset, in terrible shape. We got him over to Hill House Hospice in Richmond Hill,” Smith said, “and he went to sleep that night and didn’t wake up.” That hospice stay lasted only twelve hours.
Niko, Ale, Daniel and Luka
Smith was the main caregiver for his wife, Tessie, who died of cancer. When he wasn’t working, he was taking care of Tessie, up at 2 a.m. taking her sugars. “I wasn’t ready for the day,” he said. “I wasn’t ready for the night.” That went on for four and a half months. “This is a time when the caregiver can become a spouse again,” he said of the time in a hospice, which is often two or three weeks. The Townsend-Smith Foundation wants to fund the hospice through fundraising and government contribution. “The government would contribute to this palliative patient with the funds for some of their health care that they normally would,” Smith said, “and then the community, through donations, will provide the balance of that to cover the cost of the care.” To learn more about Smith Townsend Foundation, including how to donate or volunteer, visit the website www.townsendsmith.ca.
Ariana and Alessia Borea at the Firetruck