Birmingham Hospice axes jobs as it faces £2.4m black hole
Birmingham Hospice has announced it is making significant cuts to its workforce as it faces a multimillion-pound deficit.
Birmingham Hospice has announced proposals to make significant cuts to its workforce as it struggles with a £2.4m deficit this year.
The charity has told us it is considering reducing the number of its inpatient beds and axe around 45 full-time roles.
CEO Simon Fuller said: "Birmingham Hospice is faced with having to reduce its services, and that's incredibly distressing for everyone here at the hospice and for everyone who wants to see sustainable palliative care services.
"People deserve better. They deserve end-of-life care that's accessible for everybody. They shouldn't have to wait for end-of-life care in the same way they've waited for other services because they can't wait."
Primarily, funding for hospices come from donations, but a third is received from the NHS and central government.
Leaders at Birmingham Hospice have called crisis talks with NHS commissioners to negotiate additional funding.
Dawn Ward, Chair of the Board of Trustees for Birmingham Hospice, said: “The hospice sector helps to take pressure off the NHS by supporting those with a terminal diagnosis as inpatients or in the community.
"If hospices are forced to reduce the number of people they can help, that will mean longer stays and delayed discharges from the acute sector, causing longer waits for treatment elsewhere."