We awarded St Helena Hospice £11,700 for a new Cuddle bed for its Inpatient Unit. The bed arrived in March 2024 and since then has been invaluable for patients.

Most recently, Catherine Loring benefitted from the bed when she received care from the Hospice, following a visit to A&E after her family became concerned that she was muddled and behaving oddly.

But she has little recollection of what happened at A&E. After having an assessment, the hospital palliative doctors arranged for Catherine to be admitted to the Hospice, where she stayed for a few weeks before going home with the support of the Hospice in the Home team and SinglePoint.

While she had been at the Hospice, Catherine witnessed her daughter’s marriage blessing and shared her joy. She also took great comfort from being able to use the cuddle bed to spend quality time with her family.

“I’m on a big bed, a cuddle bed, and my family can get in with me and we have had cuddles on the bed, which is fantastic to have that closeness,” said Catherine. “When you’re in a wheelchair or laying on a bed where you can’t actually cuddle somebody properly, to have that personal contact and closeness and just blubber together, and then start saying silly things to each other, just having that smile and that family silliness, that is very important.”

Lianne Keen, the Trusts and Commissioning Manager for St Helena Hospice, said: “As you can see, the bed has made a huge difference, and we can’t thank Catalyst enough.”