Heart of Kent Hospice present at Palliative Care Congress

Today, Julie Lucas a Senior Registered Nurse in our In-Patient Unit will be speaking at the Palliative Care Congress about 'An Exploration of Corneal Donation within a Hospice Inpatient Unit'

The cornea is the clear outer layer of tissue at the front of the eye which lets in light so that you can see. If a someone chooses to donate their corneas after they die, they could give someone back the gift of sight. You may hear people talk about 'eye donation', but eyes are never transplanted whole. Eye donation involves donating your corneas, not your iris or the whole eye. 

The Association for Palliative Medicine of Great Britain and Ireland (APM) host the Palliative Care Congress on an annual basis. PCC events attract over 500 delegates from around the world from a diverse multidisciplinary background. 

Heart of Kent Hospice had 11 corneal donations for the year 2022/2023 and this has increased to 20 donations at end of January for the year 2023/2024. The Hospice will always endeavour to fulfll patient's wishes.

The presentation to PCC will include:

• the background to the issues around corneal donation
• the barriers to donation
• eligibility of donors
• the journey of advancement of corneal donation taking place at the Hospice
• future plans to continue advancement of donations at the Hospice