St Mary's hospice nurse says goodbye after 35 years

Solveig Hunt has been a constant at St Mary’s Hospice since it opened to care for patients suffering from terminal illnesses in June 1989.

Fond farewell to ‘mum’ of St Mary’s Hospice after 35 years of nursing (Image: St Mary's Hospice)

The hospice is celebrating turning 35 this year, having looked after hundreds of people over the years.

Initially beginning her career as a bank nurse, Solveig got a permanent job on the in-patient unit in 1995, then moved her focus to the Hospice at Home service when it launched in 2008. In recent years, she has worked across both aspects of the service, always with a smile.

Solveig chose to work at St Mary’s after developing an interested in palliative nursing when she worked on a busy medical ward in the 1980s.

Being unable to give dying patients the proper space, care and time they needed, inspired her to join the hospice.

Her favourite part of the job is nursing the dying and supporting their families, Solveig has found that you can make a real difference at the end of life.

One of her favourite memories is helping a husband accept that his wife was dying, and that he needed to let her know that he would be OK when she was gone. This helped his wife settle and die peacefully.

Solveig said: “I’m very thankful to the hospice for letting me work to the best of my ability, I’m given the knowledge, time and equipment to make a difference.”

At the end of Solveig’s final shift on Wednesday August 28, a number of St Mary's staff, past and present, came along to wish her well.

Solveig is very well loved and will be much missed (Image: St Mary's Hospice)

At the goodbye gathering, Solveig thanked everyone she had worked alongside over the years, particularly the health care assistants and nursing staff who helped her do the job she loved for so many years.

St Mary’s Hospice said: "Solveig will be known to hundreds of families across our region not just for the expert care she has provided but also for her warm smile, her compassion, and her positive personality.

"She epitomises everything great about St Mary's, and the esteem in which she's held was demonstrated by the number of her colleagues, past and present, who came to her send-off.

“There have been lots of tears from people who she's helped over the years, colleagues she has worked alongside and mentored, who will miss her.

“One of the staff described her as the Hospice's mum, which is a fitting description. While she will always be remembered here for her warm and nurturing character, it is worth mentioning too that she is an exceptionally skilled nurse. We are certainly poorer without her."