Hospices in Leeds – “Leeding” the way in innovation, inclusion and care
Hospice care is a specialised service that provides treatment and support to patients with life-limiting illnesses, combining specialist medical care for managing pain and other symptoms with emotional, practical and spiritual support. As well as providing expert care for patients, hospices support their families and loved ones too.
This week we are visiting Leeds to learn more about innovative programmes at Sue Ryder Wheatfields and St Gemma’s hospices.
Sue Ryder Wheatfields Hospice, the Living Well programme
Facilitated by Sue Ryder’s specialist team of physiotherapists, occupational therapists and complementary therapists, these sessions are designed to educate and promote independent self-management of a patient’s conditions and symptoms.
Patients are given the opportunity to meet with peers and can attend as many of the sessions as they wish. Day therapy sessions these can include music quizzes, bingo, Tai Chi, visits from the Pet as Therapy dog, Luna, and chatting to other patients.
One patient of the service shared how the sessions offer, "A very enjoyable day out mixing with like-minded people and excellent staff and volunteers."
Sue Ryder Wheatfields Hospice Sexuality and Gender Monitoring Working Group
There is still much work to be done to embed routine sexual orientation and gender identity monitoring trans status monitoring across healthcare. To help to address this, in 2021 NHS England joined forces with the LGBT Foundation to launch the ‘If we’re not counted we don’t count’ good practice guide to sexual orientation and gender identity monitoring.
With funding from West Yorkshire ICB, Sue Ryder Wheatfields Hospice is proud to be piloting a project on behalf of the Leeds Palliative Care Network to implement this guidance. Dr Ellie Kane, leading this work said, “A key area of making sure we're serving our whole community is understanding who we are already serving. People from minority sexualities and genders can often feel unwelcome in hospice services and so we're implementing NHS England's ‘If we're not counted we don't count’ project. This will allow us to care for people in the way they wish to be cared for but also help us understand gaps in our service better.”
So far, the Sue Ryder Wheatfields Hospice Sexuality and Gender Monitoring Working Group has looked at what changes can be made to forms, admission procedures and training packages to implement effective gender and sexuality monitoring and the hospice team hopes their findings can better support LGBTQ+ patients and address LGBTQ+ health inequalities.
In February 2023, Dr Kane helped support Hospice UK’s publication of their ‘I Just Want to be Me’ report, helping to further raise awareness of the action which must be taken to ensure palliative care is accessible and inclusive for all trans and non-binary service users.
St Gemma’s Academic Unit reaches 10 year milestone
The St Gemma’s Academic Unit of Palliative Care trains health professionals from across the city and beyond. The team deliver hundreds of in-person and online palliative care training courses for professionals each year, as well as carrying out research, the results of which are used to improve patient care and help reduce inequalities globally.
To mark the first decade of the Academic Unit, Professor Lucy Ziegler had an essay featured as part of the University of Leeds’ World Changers series. You can read her full essay here: https://
For more information about the Academic Unit of Palliative Care visit: www.
St Gemma’s is supporting people who don’t have a home
At St Gemma’s they have a city-wide inclusion team working with people without a home and with hostels to support those who traditionally would find it harder to access care services. Nicky, a senior nurse at St Gemma’s oversees this work, working with partners across Leeds to identify people who may need care and support. Nicky and her colleagues work hard to build trusting relationships as often people do not want to accept help or access services. The team’s person-centred approach means that more people from different backgrounds are now able to access vital care. The difference made by this service is outlined by Alan who says that the team ‘saved his life.’ https://
This is just a snapshot of the important work and expertise in Sue Ryder Wheatfields and St Gemma’s.
We hope you’ll join us as we visit other hospices across the region learning about the innovative and people centred care our region should be very proud of.
Useful Links
West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership
West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership – Long Term Conditions and Personalised Care