2. Chris Barrett

Chris is one of just two staff who have been with the charity since the our doors opened in January 1994.

She trained at the Dorset School of Nursing, and qualified in 1989. Experience with what was the West Dorset Macmillan Service gave Chris a passion for palliative care, and so when she saw an advert for a new hospice she decided to apply.

“We all started as one big multi-disciplinary team,” says Chris, “both clinical and non clinical staff. We had a two week induction period where we had lots of training including symptom management and complementary therapy, and then we waited for the first patient to arrive. There was mixed feelings about it when they came in, because the team was looking forward to it but we were also aware the patient being admitted meant that it was a difficult time for them.”

Another thing Chris remembers distinctly about the time when the hospice opened was the uniform: “I remember us all waiting for it to arrive. It was a green A-line skirt and a green floral top, and we all felt as if we were working in a building society! It was thought it would feel less clinical, but it was nice to come back into traditional nursing uniforms later.”

Although there have been many changes to the charity over the years, Chris says one thing is still very much the same: “At the centre of everything we do is the patient and the family, and that has never changed. The patients we care for now have more complex needs because treatments have advanced, but at the end of the day they need our specialist palliative care. Every day is different, but the patients and families are amazing, so strong and dignified. It never ceases to amaze me.

“I have worked with some amazing people. There’s been lots of laughter, lots of tears, lots of really good times. The wider charity team is so supportive, but with those who work on the Inpatient Unit, we know each other so well and we’re always there for each other.

“I sometimes wonder what has kept me here for thirty years. There have been new challenges and I’ve learnt lots of new things over the years because the care we give has changed, but I just can’t think of somewhere else where I’d get such job satisfaction.”