Maureen O’Neill joined Victoria Hospice as a volunteer in 2014. Since then, she has logged nearly 1500 hours of service on Victoria Hospice’s Inpatient Unit (IPU), at our fundraising events and, most recently, on the 8 South Palliative Care Unit (PCU) at Victoria’s Royal Jubilee Hospital (RJH).*
In February 2025, Victoria Hospice and Island Health deepened their palliative care partnership to include training and deployment of Victoria Hospice volunteers to the 8 South PCU. Since then, five Hospice volunteers have logged 637 hours on 8 South, and four more are currently completing orientation.
When the invitation went out for this new opportunity, Maureen put up her hand, and completed her first volunteer shift on the 8 South PCU last March, extending the helpful, caring reach of Victoria Hospice volunteers to palliative patients “next door”.
“It’s always nice to know you might have brightened someone’s day,” Maureen says. As a retired Occupational Therapist, Maureen has years of clinical experience under her belt, which serves her volunteer practice in a unique way. Her focus on patient comfort provides the kind of non-pharmaceutical pain management that is so important to people as they approach end of life. “Our roles as volunteers on the IPU and PCU are similar in that the goal is always patient comfort,” Maureen adds. “But on 8 South, our primary focus is on providing companionship and reassurance, often helping to alleviate the boredom and anxiety that sometimes comes with being in hospital by offering conversation and snacks to make things a little less daunting.”
“The volunteer program enhances supportive care by providing comfort, companionship, and practical support during what can be a very vulnerable time. It has further enriched the compassionate environment we strive to create for patients and families on the unit,” says Mackenzie Gavidia-Alas, Manager 8S Oncology & Palliative Care. “Our partnership with Victoria Hospice has brought tremendous value to patients, families, and our clinical teams on the Palliative Care Unit,” she adds. “We’ve seen firsthand how meaningful this additional layer of support can be and are very grateful for the continued collaboration.”
Amber Rumpel, Palliative Care Nurse Consultant on 8 South, sees the value of this partnership every day, and really noticed it brought to life during the holiday time, New Year and long winter months. When asked about the partnership, she offered, “I just wanted to say a huge thank you to the volunteers that have helped to bring such comfort to the patients on 8 South over the holidays. It was so lovely seeing them all. I hope they know how much we appreciate them.”
Congratulations for one year of this expanded Victoria Hospice-Island Health partnership, bringing hospice hearts like Maureen’s into the hospital corridors and patients’ lives.
*In September 2020, Island Health opened a new specialized palliative care unit at RJH on 8 South accommodating up to 12 patients with complex symptom or psychosocial issues plus life-limiting illness. These beds are in addition to the 18 beds on the Victoria Hospice Inpatient Unit.