This is my lovely Mum, Anne Spencer.....
"Mum was diagnosed with stage four Lymphoma on the 16th December 2020 at the Hallamshire and was quickly told that they weren’t going to treat her, as the cancer was too aggressive and she wouldn’t survive the treatment.
"Trying to absorb that information was incredibly distressing for mum and for us and when they told us on the 23rd December that she only had a few days to live, mum desperately wanted to get transferred to St Luke’s or to go home. Because mum was on such high levels of oxygen by this point the Hallamshire ruled out the possibility to go home so we started trying to get her to St Luke’s via a referral but time was obviously of the essence.
"I rang St Luke’s on Christmas Day to beg them to take her, as she so desperately didn’t want to die in hospital. I’m not saying that her medical care at the Hallamshire was lacking particularly but she spoke about feeling abandoned and uncared for and she felt as though they had put her in a room and told her to die quietly without a fuss. David from St Luke’s called me back on Christmas Day afternoon and was utterly wonderful, he made me instantly feel as though he cared about her and that she could get her dying wish in getting the transfer to St Luke’s to hopefully get some peace and to feel like she was cared for and comfortable. David called me back again on Christmas Day evening to say that they had a bed and that they would liaise with the Hallamshire to get her there on Boxing Day, which they did.
"Telling mum on Boxing Day morning that she could go to St Luke’s felt like the greatest gift I had ever been able to give her, she was so incredibly thankful, and immediately felt a sense of relief. At St Luke’s they spent the whole of Boxing Day making sure she was comfortable and listening to her and her wishes to want to feel loved and cared for.
"Mum died the next day, peacefully in a beautiful room.
"The feeling you get when you walk into St Luke’s is one of peace, and serenity. It is presented as a five star hotel, and everyone there makes you feel heard and cared for, even us who went in to see mum after she had died. I only wish mum had had a few more days there so that she could have truly appreciated the difference in care to that she experienced in the hospital environment, but she got there and she felt so incredibly grateful for what they achieved in the small amount of time that she was there.
"I will be forever thankful to David for the way he spoke to me on Christmas Day, I knew he was going to do everything he could to make the move happen and his manner and professionalism was everything that I needed to hear in my time of need. We are therefore raising funds for this amazing charity, and hope that people will want to join us in the challenge to remember my lovely mum.”
