The Holy Cross Hospice
The Holy Cross Hospice is situated in Emoyeni, KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, some 120 kilometres north of Durban and is run by Sister Priscilla Dlamini. The Holy Cross Hospice is, however, not merely a hospice. It consists of a “complex” that incorporates a community clinic, 40 bed hospice, crèche, training centre and a medicinal herb garden and dispensary and has a total staff complement of 50 people.
The Holy Cross Hospice is adjacent to a Roman Catholic church, a State funded primary and secondary school and a convent.
Sister Priscilla runs the many programmes she has developed from the Holy Cross Hospice. She was appointed to the post in 2000 by the Bishop of Eshowe, Bishop Biyase, to help this desperately impoverished and AIDS ravaged community. The affairs of the Holy Cross Hospice are governed by an independent Board of Trustees drawn from leaders in the local community.
The clinic provides basic medical facilities for the local community. It is staffed by Sister Priscilla, a trained nurse and volunteers. It is partly funded by the government and it deals with basic care, diagnoses and referrals to either the nearest hospital, doctor or, in more tragic cases, to the hospice on the complex.
From funds raised by Sister and help from various sources, Sister converted stables on the premises in to a 40 bed hospice in 2002. Since then, the hospice has provided dignified care for hundreds of terminally ill men, women and children.
Until 2004, the crèche consisted of a converted shed that could house no more than 24 children in cramped conditions. In August 2004, a new crèche, which was funded by other donors, was opened. This new facility – The Bishop Mansuet Biyase Crèche – can take some 150 children. Most of these children are orphans.
Through an innovative Home Based Care programme, the Holy Cross Hospice currently provides support – ranging from the provision of food, clothing and medicine to bereavement counselling, palliative care and acting as surrogate parents – for many AIDS sufferers and sick people and 2,500 orphans and 1,000 child headed families. The programme is currently staffed by 23 caregivers, specifically trained by Sister Priscilla at the training centre to carry out this role, and a number of trainee caregivers.
Sister Priscilla has had some considerable success in administering natural herbal remedies to her HIV infected patients providing both symptomatic relief and slowing down the onset of some of the terrible and painful side effects by boosting the immune system. To further this, Sister has established an herbal garden and dispensary on the Holy Cross Hospice premises to further this project. BBC2 screened a documentary on Alternative Medicines in 2006 which featured Sister’s work in this field.
Significantly, when Sister Priscilla arrived at the Holy Cross Hospice the only operative facility was the clinic. The hospice, crèche and training centre and the many programmes that are now run at the Holy Cross Hospice were developed by Sister Priscilla. She had the dream and the drive to help this impoverished community.
Popularity: 43% [?]
