Hospice being set up in Barbados

(Barbados Nation) Government is joining with Barbadians in the United States to set up a BDS$1.5 million hospice for terminally ill patients.

Minister of Health Donville Inniss said in New York Sunday the hospice would add another dimension to the nation’s health care system as “we seek to provide the best possible levels of palliative care to our people”.

The project is being planned by the Barbados Cancer Association of America (BACA) and a coalition of Bajan organizations in New York, New Jersey, Florida, Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Inniss described it as yet another example of the contributions Barbadians abroad were making to the continued development of their birthplace.

“The Barbados society and economy continue to be enriched by the invaluable contributions of Barbadians in the diaspora,” he told scores of representatives of Bajan associations, professionals and others at a fund-raising luncheon at Floral Park on Long Island.

Hospice facilities provide “end of life care” for patients suffering from terminal illnesses. Professionals and volunteers give medical and spiritual support to help people who are dying have peace, comfort and dignity in the final days, according to the US National Institutes of Health.