There is a home with a very big heart in Balzan. Not much noise emanates from there but many families have been touched over the past 30 years by what is offered from this place. It sits in a corner looking very ordinary but the compassion found within it’s walls is extraordinary. It is the place that homes Hospice Malta.

The team of professionals and volunteers who work at Hospice have one common aim - that of providing the best quality of care to so many at a very critical stage of life. It takes a special someone to take on the burden of so many questions to which there seem to be no answers. The team at Hospice strives to do just that - to give answers related to queries about the illness itself, it’s progression, it’s outcome, it’s care when cure is not possible. It is a holistic care which encompasses the physical, the social, the emotional and the spiritual dimensions.

At a time when vulnerability and frailty become the course of one’s days an understanding individual who can acknowledge your condition and is insightful about how to go about it will make all the difference. Getting the right help with prescribed medication, minimizing side effects and enhancing coping mechanisms in one’s daily routine in view of diminished abilities are all offered through the Hospice Care Service. It is a comprehensive service delivered from the heart to give empowerment to those in need so that even in the face of a diagnosis which is considered to be dreadful, one can take it on bravely and continue to live a life never shorn of dignity.

To top all this off, services offered from Hospice come at no cost to the patient because all services are given free of charge. Whether it’s a piece of necessary equipment or a home visit by any one of their specialized health care professionals, Hospice will see to it that any of its services is given free to persons suffering from serious conditions like cancer. For Hospice the patient is the centre of the care provided and each patient matters.

Behind this quality of care are the innumerable, faceless and very generous individuals who selflessly donate funds and/or actively participate in events organized by Hospice. You are probably already one of these generous persons. Christmas at Hospice Malta is sprewn with red poinsettias, lovely hampers and many sweet-smelling mince pies. These are all available to be bought by kind people who want to continue making Hospice a beacon of hope.

More than a thousand patients are cared for by Hospice every year but the service is not only extended to patients. Hospice is a place also to so many others whose lives are upset by the illness of a loved husband, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister, friend. Each and everyone is involved during this bumpy ride and each and everyone’s vulnerability needs meticulous attention and assistance.

May the joyful spirit that is Christmas kindle your hearts that your kindness and generosity will contribute to help Hospice help many more patients and their families.

Kenneth Delia is CEO of Hospice Malta