Before heading to the Palliative Care Department, Ilze Neimane-Nešpora and Ilze Zosule, the founders of "Hospice LV," along with volunteer coordinator Sintija Reinberga and public relations specialist Inita Sila, met with the hospital's board chairman Juris Lācis, head nurse of the Palliative Care Department Jana Cimermane, and physiotherapist Ilze Brutāne from the Kurzeme Rehabilitation Center. They were joined by a group of volunteers ready to participate in the "Festive Table" project in Ventspils.
The Ventspils Palliative Care Department was established in 2006 and is currently the only medical facility in Kurzeme providing inpatient palliative care services. "Looking to the future, we will seek opportunities to expand this profile and do more because the service is in demand and needed. Most often, the department receives patients with oncological diseases, heart failure, stroke aftermath, and bedsores. And the number of patients is increasing. Therefore, the work done by 'Hospice LV' is very valuable – any kind of support is significant for both patients and staff, and it draws attention to the issue of dignified death at the national level," stated the hospital's board chairman Juris Lācis.
"The story of the 'Festive Table' is not about food – it is about a vast system that we can all create together," emphasized Ilze Neimane-Nešpora, chairwoman of the board of "Hospice LV." Volunteer Lienīte Ansone, who has been visiting patients in Riga hospitals for several years, reminded us of the importance of volunteers – a volunteer cannot cure anyone or promise health, but can offer emotions. Every patient has a story, a pain, and volunteers are needed for these patients. When hospital staff are exhausted, volunteers can provide emotional support.
After inspiring conversations, the "Hospice LV" team, with their "festive table" – a cart with sweet and savory snacks provided by Ventspils social enterprise "RaMaLa," "Druvas ice cream," and coffee – went to the Ventspils Palliative Care Department, talking to, treating, and cheering up patients who will eagerly await the volunteers' next visit.
The project "Festive Table in Ventspils" is financially supported by the Society Integration Fund from the Latvian state budget funds.
