Our Hospice Team
St Francis Hospice services are delivered by a team of more than 600 staff, volunteers, and contract staff. Find out more about each role and discipline
Meet our Team
Staff nurses and clinical nurse managers in our in-patient units provide palliative care and support to our patients, their families and friends.
Community palliative care nurses provide specialist support and advice to patients in their place of residence, and their families. They collaborate with other healthcare professionals involved in the patient’s care.
Our staff nurses, clinical nurse managers and nurses trained as complementary therapists and lymphoedema specialists all contribute to the care provided in Outpatient and Day Services.
Our nursing colleagues contribute to patient care and staff development through many roles, including education, infection control, haemovigilance, nursing management, and more.
Our medical staff includes palliative medicine consultants, specialist registrar trainees, non-consultant hospital doctors, GP trainees, and others.
The diagnosis of a serious illness brings many changes and can raise lots of questions, both practical and emotional. Everyone has their own way of coping and their own resources. Sometimes we need help from someone outside of the family to help make sense of what is happening, ask our questions and discuss how to adjust to illness and all the changes it brings to our life.
The Social Work service of St. Francis Hospice is provided by qualified and experienced social workers who work as part of the multidisciplinary team. We can help you talk through thoughts and feelings about illness, support around changes the illness has brought, provide counselling and facilitate family meetings. We also provide support to carers. When serious illness occurs in the family, adults naturally want to protect children from its impact. However, it is vitally important that children are involved in the family’s experience and helped to express their feelings. We offer support and advice to parents and families in recognising and managing the specific needs of children and others who may have difficulty with understanding illness and coping with change and loss. We can provide guidance on communicating with children and managing difficult conversations. The service is also extended to the family during their experience of bereavement.
The chaplains provide spiritual and religious care and support to patients, families, significant others, staff members and volunteers in all services delivered by St Francis Hospice.
While at all times respecting and upholding the dignity of the person, chaplains are privileged to join people on the final stage of life’s journey as they face illness and death. We listen to their stories as we journey with them, exploring what gives meaning to their lives.
We offer support to people of diverse cultures and faith traditions, or none, acknowledging what is important and meaningful for them. We respect the rights of patients/families to have access to spiritual care by members of their own faith and we enable this where possible on request.
We respond to peoples’ religious needs as appropriate for them. The celebration of the Eucharist takes place in SFH Raheny and SFH Blanchardstown on certain days each week. The Sacrament of the Sick and Sacrament of Reconciliation are available on request.
Chaplaincy often goes beyond words; sometimes there are no words to be said. Silence, waiting, being there, sitting beside, standing there is what becomes important. Presence is what touches people in ways that we cannot measure.
The Physiotherapy team in St Francis Hospice can work with you to improve your quality of life and give you more independence, no matter what your physical abilities are.
Physiotherapists aim to develop, maintain and restore maximum movement and functional ability throughout a persons life. This is done by identifying the potential in each patient and working toward reaching it.
Our physiotherapists work closely with all members of the hospice team in order to co-ordinate your care in a safe and effective manner. We have strong links with our colleagues in hospital and community settings to ensure the seamless delivery of high quality care.
The Physiotherapy team at St. Francis Hospice aims to improve your ability to carry out daily tasks, help you to maintain independence, and gain relief from symptoms you may have as a result of your disease or its treatment. A physiotherapist can assess you and devise a plan of treatment. The plan will be carried out at a pace suited to you to help you reach your goals.
Services provided by the Physiotherapy Department include:
Rehabilitation
Exercise programmes
Mobility assessment
Management of breathlessness (dyspnoea) and chest secretions
Fatigue management
Advice on the management of falls
Patient/carer advice
Pain management
Occupational therapy (OT) supports people to take part in everyday activities that are important or meaningful to them.
At St. Francis Hospice Dublin, OTs work with people throughout all stages of their illness whose ability to function as they wish, is affected. OTs work with patients and carers to improve independence for self-care, work and leisure activities. After the OT assessment goals are set to ensure the patients’ needs and wishes are at the centre of the intervention. OT interventions focus on achieving better functional independence, comfort and well-being.
OT interventions can include: Education and practical advice to manage symptoms such as breathlessness, pain, fatigue and anxiety, to maintain or support re-engagement in meaningful tasks.
Interventions to help you complete day to day tasks, such as washing, and dressing, and preparing meals. This may include rehabilitation and/ or equipment and adaptations to help make tasks easier.
Therapeutic groups and exploration of leisure interests such as gardening, baking and reminiscence to improve quality of life.
In the Inpatient Unit OTs also complete:
Assessment for specialist chairs, including comfort chairs, wheelchairs, incorporating support and pressure relief, to maximise function and comfort.
Environmental and functional assessments to facilitate hours out, overnights or discharge home.
Healthcare assistants work in our In-Patient Units and Outpatient and Day Service. They assist patients with their personal care needs and also provide support to family members and visitors.
Household staff members serve meals and snacks to patients in our In-Patient Units.
Our pharmacists work with nursing and medical staff to ensure safe, effective, and rational use of medicines to improve your health and wellbeing.
It is our job to check prescriptions and to answer questions for nurses, doctors and patients on the safe prescribing and administration of medicines.
Complementary Therapy can:
Help you relax
Ease anxiety
Reduce stress and tension
Reduce pain and discomfort
Reduce nausea
Ease symptoms such as breathlessness, constipation, fatigue
Improve sleep pattern
Reduce psychological distress / provide emotional support
Complementary Therapies provided by St Francis Hospice are massage, aromatherapy, reflexology, Indian head massage and M-Technique. All these therapies are used alongside conventional medicine to treat patients. Our staff are experienced in treating patients with various illnesses.
Therapies available:
Massage – Gentle movement over the skin and muscles which allows the body tissues to let go of tension and strain.
Aromatherapy – The use of essential oils in treatments to improve physical and emotional well-being.
Reflexology – A technique that uses pressure point massage usually on the feet or hands to help restore balance in the body.
Indian Head Massage – A gentle massage of the head, face, neck and shoulders which can help relieve fatigue and stress and induce a feeling of calm. Essential oils may or may not be used.
M-Technique – A series of very gentle stroking movements at a set sequence, pressure and pace. It is different from conventional massage and may be suitable when massage is inappropriate.
The Lymphoedema service at St Francis Hospice Dublin provides individualised assessment and management of lymphoedema for palliative patients under the care of St Francis Hospice.
Lymphoedema is oedema (swelling caused by a build-up of fluid) which can occur anywhere in the body but most commonly occurs in arms or legs. It is most frequently caused by disruption of the lymphatic system following cancer surgery, radiation therapy or tumour growth.
Oedema, which is not due to lymphoedema but as a result of other diseases, can also occur in patients.
Lymphoedema is not curable but can be managed, depending on the level of oedema present. In St Francis Hospice, treatment mainly includes the application of compression garments. Depending on the level of lymphoedema or the location of the oedema, some patients receive specialised massage called Manual Lymph Drainage along with compression bandaging.
In most cases, lymphoedema or oedema will continue to worsen if not treated. Treatments can help to reduce swelling, relieve pain and improve limb mobility. It can improve quality of life for patients.
Continuing professional development is an essential for providing high quality, evidence-based palliative care. Our education and library team provides courses, conferences, clinical education and placements, and other supports to St Francis Hospice staff and volunteers, as well as to healthcare professionals from other organisations.
Our non-clinical staff carry out essential work in areas including:
Reception
Clinical administration
Senior management and governance
Human resources
Finance
General and technical services
Transport
Stores
ICT
Volunteer management
Communications
Fundraising
Our 300 volunteers enhance our hospice services through their contribution across numerous roles.
For more information, visit our Volunteers page.
Our contract catering staff provide all meals for our patients and also operate restaurants at both hospices for staff and volunteers, visitors, and patients who wish to dine there rather than in their rooms.
Our contract cleaning staff ensure our hospice facilities are kept to the highest standard of cleanliness and hygiene.
Our contract security staff provide assistance to visitors and staff, and are on duty 24 hours per day.
Short Videos
Meet our multidisciplinary team in these short videos.
Our very first employee, Betty, describes her work as a Community Palliative Care Clinical Nurse Specialist.
Physiotherapist Debbie talks about her work in enabling people to live as well as possible with their illness.
Ciara tells us about her work as an occupational therapist in outpatient and day service.
As Coordinator of Social Work and Bereavement services, Niamh tells us what she loves about her job and how the needs of patients and families are tailored to suit each individual at different stages of their journey.
Martha tells us about her experience as a doctor working with St Francis Hospice.
Anne tells us what its like to work as part of the Reception team.
Olwen, one of our Chaplains, describes her favorite parts of her job.
Eimear talks to us about fundraising, philanthropy and her love of working with corporate partnerships and introducing them to the hospice and palliative care.
Nurse Paula talks to us about common misconceptions of the hospice environment, her love of her job and her great work life balance.