The Cochrane Hospice Society is looking to connect with the community through its first meeting of the year, to be held on Oct. 11 at the Cochrane Alliance Church. The non-profit, which formed in the spring of 2017, is looking to become a networking hub to guide and assist all matters related to palliative and end of life care for Cochranites. They are also building up their Facebook page to help promote the society and garner local awareness. "Creating a hospice society in Cochrane is a community endeavour," explained chair Linda Derkach, adding that the goal of the society is to assist with supports to keep people in their homes as long as possible. The society has a long-term goal of an eventual hospice facility, while linking those in need of palliative, bereavement and end of life care to required resources. There are also volunteer opportunities to beef up social supports, as the society has received the green light to train volunteers through the Alberta Health Services palliative training models to provide non-medical assists – helping those in need of care with daily tasks like shopping and dog walking. Acknowledging that a dedicated facility will take time, Derkach said the society is in talks with various stakeholders about possibilities of providing hospice and respite beds. The Bethany Care Centre has confirmed that hospice is "on their radar," pending government announcements. Derkach said around 70 people have expressed interest at rolling up their sleeves and lending support to the society. The group is hopeful to have a strong turnout at the Oct. 11 event, which runs from 7-9 p.m. The evening will feature guest speaker Dr. Eric Wasylenko, co-founder of the Foothills Country Hospice near Okotoks. Wasylenko assisted in the development of Calgary's regional integrated palliative care service. Derkach, with an extensive background with the palliative home care team out of Calgary and as a director of rural palliative home care services for the Central Alberta region, said the opportunities to give back to the community is what has prompted her to get involved. The Cochrane Hospice Society is looking to host a fundraiser in the spring. Visit cochranehospicesociety.ca to learn more or connect through email [email protected].
