Debbie Pigeon is an outreach clinical nurse specialist funded by Macmillan Cancer Support for those who may struggle to seek help, including people who are homeless, have a history of drug and alcohol addiction or hoarding, people with a mental health problem, or who are living in deprivation, as Debbie explained:

“Traditionally, people from underserved groups have an opinion that ‘hospice’ means end of life. So when you mention the word, they think they’re going to die straight away. I introduce the idea of hospice to them early on and support them with symptom management, along with emotional, psychological, social and financial issues, so when they do deteriorate, they feel part of St Helena Hospice and feel safe that we’re going to support them.

“I love working in the community. I love making a difference for people. The most rewarding thing is building up trusting relationships because many of these people have traditionally been let down and lack trust in statutory services. My aim is to be alongside them throughout their illness so they can be supported with dignity until the end of their life.”

St Helena’s Safe Harbour project, run in collaboration with Macmillan Cancer Support, won the Innovation in Tackling Inequalities Award at the Hospice UK 2018 awards.

This story may not be published elsewhere without express permission from St Helena Hospice.