When someone is diagnosed with a life limiting, or end of life condition, they may wish to leave behind some special memories for their loved ones.
Lindsey Lodge Advanced Assistant Leah Gillott and Healthcare Assistants Tracy Strong and Julie Popple are supporting patients with memory making within the hospice setting, and currently have a Memory Making Table in the Wellbeing Centre with a variety of ideas to prompt discussions.
Tracy Strong said: “Having the table prompts conversations about making memories, either within groups, or one-to-one.
“Some people may never have thought about making memories, and others would like to, but don’t know how.”
Ideas on the table include memory bags and boxes, scrap books, milestone cards, teddy bears and letters, and all of these are available for patients to make memories.
Julie Popple said: “A letter is a very powerful way for patients to say something that they may not be able to say in person right now. Writing a letter, allows them to make peace and have closure.
“Memory bags and boxes can contain a whole host of mementos, whereas a scrap book is a simple way of sharing photos, notes and other memorabilia, this can also help our patients to reminisce about happy memories as they are creating them.”
Leah Gillott added: “It’s also possible to include cards and notes for milestone birthdays and events in the future.
“Leaving these thoughts for the people we love can be very important, especially for patients with younger families who could grow up without remembering some aspects of their lives with them.”
The clinical teams hold a Christmas raffle each year, and the proceeds from this supports purchasing the memory making materials. Patients can make two free memory items, but can purchase more if they require them, they are also encouraged to bring their own if they wish to have something more personalised.
Leah added: “We offer this service to all of our patients, whether attending the Wellbeing Centre, or in our Inpatient Unit. We try to cater for everyone’s budget and requirements and hope that these important memory making activities provide comfort for patients and their loved ones both now and in the future.”
For more information about any of the services provided by Lindsey Lodge, or if you’d like to support our memory making activities please email
llh.enquiries@nhs.net
