Catholic-run hospices offer specialized care for terminally ill

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Apr 03, 2017: In a well-lit corner, a lady cares for and reads a story to another who is listening in a comfortable bed. On the adjacent bed another women sleeps peacefully after lunch.

On the first floor, the men’s area, they are also relaxing. Situated on a busy New Delhi street, Shanti Avedna Sadan, a cancer hospice, is the last stop for the terminally ill.

The hospice was established by cancer specialist, L.J. De Souza, a Catholic, in 1994. It currently houses 11 terminally ill cancer patients out of which five are male and the rest are female. It has a capacity of over 35 patients.

Working as a young doctor in the Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai in the early 80s, De Souza said that he was moved by the plight of cancer patients who were sent home for lack of space in the hospital.

"I was inspired to start this facility purely because there was a crying need for it," he said.

De Souza said that terminally-ill patients used to come to his office at the hospital pleading not to be sent home.

"I just could not keep them at the hospital and block out a bed for patients needing treatment so I had to find an alternative," he said.

De Souza opened India’s first cancer hospice in commercial capital Mumbai in 1986 with a capacity of 100 beds. He went on to open hospices in Goa and New Delhi too.

Opening a cancer hospice, a new concept in India back then, was not easy. De Souza said he faced difficulty "acquiring land for the hospice and finding staff and funds."

After overcoming such difficulties, the hospices were able to offer the specialized care of a hospital along with the love of a home to patients without charge.

Registered as a non-governmental organization, Shanti Avedna Sadan continues to care for terminally ill cancer patients and cancer patients suffering from AIDS irrespective of community, caste or creed.

Their goal is to, "add life to days and not days to life." They do not treat the cancer as patients are admitted only after all treatment options have been exhausted.

They first make a patient free from pain and then help them come to terms with the disease and their impending death so that they are at peace with themselves, their families and God.

Despite the success of his hospices De Souza said that he does not intend to open more.

"We have taken the lead and created a base model that has already been followed by more than 12 hospices in India and they will continue to increase. We have done our share. Now let others take it forward," he said.

According to data from the Indian Council of Medical Research, India registered over 2.8 million cancer cases in 2014 and 1.4 million new cases came up in 2016. The figure is expected to touch nearly 1.7 million in 2020 and over 800,000 people are expected to die of the disease by then. Breast cancer topped the list in females while mouth cancer was most prevalent in males.

To continue to serve people dying of cancer, De Souza approached many religious congregations to manage the hospice; since nursing is the most important service, qualified members of the nursing order of the Holy Cross Sisters were the best choice to take over. They are helped by paramedical nursing aides in all the three hospices. De Souza wanted an atmosphere filled with love and care for the patients so it was apt to induct the religious sisters to manage the hospices. The congregation has been associated with Shanti Avedna Sadan, the first hospice, since the facility opened in Mumbai.

The Delhi hospice is also managed by seven sisters of the congregation who are in charge of 19 women staff who attend to the patients’ psychological, medical and general needs. Holy Cross Sister Ancy Kottuppallil, who oversees the Delhi hospice, said that taking care of the terminally ill is not an easy job.

"A patient dies every few days. It is also a trauma for us. The patients at the hospice become a part of us and it is a home away from home for them. We miss the patients when they go," she said, adding that 12 patients died in March alone.

She said that each patient teaches them a different story, "Some pass away very peacefully and others linger on maybe because of some unfulfilled desires."

"We provide them medicine, food of their liking and take care of them fully. The feeling that somebody is there to take care of them gives the patients a positive attitude," the nun added.