Wellbeing Services | Dougie Mac

Our Wellbeing Services Vision

Living with a progressive, life-limiting condition can affect every part of life – physically, mentally, emotionally, socially, and spiritually. At Dougie Mac, we understand how overwhelming that can feel for both patients and their loved ones.

Our Wellbeing Services provide compassionate, holistic care for patients at our Wellbeing Centre, in the community, or in our inpatient unit, and extend support to their families. Our services include the Living Well, SPARCS (Spiritual, Pastoral, and Religious Care), Counselling & Emotional Support, and Therapies teams.

As a patient, carer, family member, including those who are bereaved you can access the below services and we will only support you with your permission (or the permission of someone speaking on your behalf). We do not impose our services or any beliefs on anyone without their consent and choosing.

How we can support you.

We offer a safe space, gentle support, and practical tools to help ease these natural feelings and make life more manageable.

Our stepped model of care, ‘stepping up and stepping down’ refers to changing the type of support you receive based on your current needs, this helps us to provide you with flexible tailored support if you need a higher level of care or if your condition improves or stabilises .

Please note: All referrals must come through the Dougie Mac Hospice Referral process. We do not accept direct referrals to Wellbeing Services.

For Patients

For Carers

For Bereaved Carers

For Patients

Our focus is to help you live as fully and meaningfully as possible, for as long as possible, while navigating the effects of a progressive, life-limiting illness.

We offer a range of services for families and carers referred to Dougie Mac, designed to be flexible and personalised so that you can access the care and support that best meets your needs.

Living Well Programme

Our Living Well Programme supports emotional and social wellbeing.

It’s based in our Wellbeing Centre and local community venues, focusing on connection, purpose, and enrichment through the Five Ways to Wellbeing (social, spiritual, emotional, physical, mental).

Call our Wellbeing Centre Reception:
01782 969606 (Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm)
01782 344300 (Evenings & Weekends)

Email Us:
📧 wellbeingcentre@dmhospice.org.uk

Download our Living Well Programme

Download Files

SPARCS

At its heart, our spiritual, pastoral and religious care service (SPARCS) is concerned with affirming the essence, the spirit of each human being: of what makes the individual uniquely who they are, and what’s important to them, especially in times of illness and loss. This can be expressed through a spiritual outlook, a religious faith or a non-spiritual/non-religious outlook.

Because Spiritual Pastoral and Religious Care means different things to different people, at Dougie Mac we’ve created some working definitions:

Spiritual Care

Spiritual healthcare is concerned with who you are, what makes you uniquely you and what’s important, especially in times of illness and loss.

Pastoral Care

Pastoral healthcare is non-religious and non-spiritual and is concerned with who you are and what’s important to you, especially in times of illness and loss.

Religious Care

Religious healthcare is about making sure that any religious needs you may have are addressed as part of your care, whatever your faith.

All staff at Dougie Mac are trained in listening to and caring for your needs, and we also have our own dedicated team of spiritual, pastoral and religious carers who’ll be happy to support you at your request.

The SPARCS team can help support in various ways including:

Helping the individual to explore and express their values or beliefs
Relaxation or meditation
Prayer or religious support
Giving someone the time and space to explore and express what’s happening to them.
Funeral Planning

As part of our initial getting to know you we will, with your permission, ask you some questions about what’s important to you and where you find strength.

The Spiritual Space at our adult hospice site is located near the main reception and is open all day.

It can be used as a place for peace, reflection, quiet, prayer or any activity which helps bring comfort, peace or find expression, and is also where you’ll find sacred and inspirational books (e.g: Bible, Quran, Bhagadvad Gita and Humanist writings, etc.) as well as items such as prayer mats, crucifixes/crosses and a range of CDs; all of which can be used in any of the quiet or patient rooms.

We can help make contact with local faith leaders should you wish to see someone authorised to perform a religious ritual or service.

We’ve created mindful relaxation videos so you can access mindful support whenever you need it.

Introduction to Relaxation

Watch Video

Calming the Chattering Mind

Watch Video

Whole Body Relaxation

Watch Video

Relaxation for Sleep

Watch Video

Visualisation Beach Walk

Watch Video

Sacred and Inspirational Text

Stoke-on-Trent Faith Contacts

Information on Faiths

Prayer and Reflection Aids

Sacred and Inspirational Text

Sacred Texts from the Faith Traditions
Bible
Quran
Humanist Quotations
Sikh Scriptures

Stoke-on-Trent Faith Contacts

Opening the Spiritual Gate – Interactive Guide to Faiths
Interactive Map: Places of Worship in Stoke-on-Trent
Places of Worship near Dougie Mac
Roman Catholic Parish Directory

Information on Faiths

Information on Faiths
Religious Festivals

Prayer and Reflection Aids

Christian
Prayers from the Faith Traditions
Spiritual Practices
Spirituality and Practices
Spiritual Activities and Self Care
Labyrinth
Labyrinth App

Future Care Planning

Future Care Planning at Dougie Mac is all about giving you the chance to tell others about you and your wishes.

It is a voluntary process and involves a series of discussions that help you explore your personal preferences and choices for your future care and treatment.

This will help other healthcare professionals involved in your care, along with family and friends to act in accordance with your wishes.

The Future Care Planning service will help you to explore the options open to you. This can include supporting you to:

–Write a Future Care Plan – a personal record of your care and treatment preferences, shared with family, professionals and GP to guide future support.
–Discuss a Respect document – a record of care priorities and treatment wishes, guiding emergency and future care in line with the individual’s preferences.
–Discuss an Advance Decision to Refuse Treatment – a legally binding document allowing a person to refuse specific medical treatments, which can be amended or withdrawn at any time.
–Information on how to register a Lasting Power of Attorney – process of allowing a person to appoint trusted individuals to make decisions on their welfare or finances.

Counselling & Emotional Support

Counselling & Emotional Support takes place in the Wellbeing Centre at the hospice; support is also available remotely by telephone and online.

Our counsellors provide a safe, confidential space to talk.

It’s natural to experience a range of conflicting emotions including fear, disbelief, denial and anger following a life-limiting illness diagnosis. You may feel unprepared for the reality of the illness and how your life will change in ways that are difficult to accept or adapt to.

Whether you’re trying to make sense of an initial diagnosis, or facing the end of your life, we are here if you need us.

Access to this service is by referral from members of the hospice multidisciplinary team. Patients must be known to and receiving active support from a Dougie Mac Palliative Care Nurse.

Complementary Therapy

Complementary therapies are holistic treatments that run alongside conventional care, that aim to support your psychological, emotional and physical wellbeing.

These treatments can be adapted to meet your needs and aims to encourage relaxation and improve feelings of wellbeing.

Access to this service is by referral from members of the hospice multidisciplinary team. Patients must be known to and receiving active support from a Dougie Mac Palliative Care Nurse.

Therapists will discuss medical history and health concerns with you, prior to your treatment to ascertain the treatment that will best meet your needs.

Complementary Therapy treatments

Aromatherapy |

Reflexology |

Massage |

Head Massage |

Using essential oils derived from plants to promote relaxation, improve mood and support overall wellbeing, often through massage, inhalation, or diffusion.

Gentle treatment applying pressure to points on the feet or hands thought to correspond with body systems, to ease stress and anxiety and improve balance.

Gentle pressure of muscles and soft tissues with a carrier oil to relieve tension, improve circulation and aid sleep.

To relax and soothe, this gentle massage may incorporate the upper back, hands and arm, head and face.

Physiotherapy

The physiotherapy team works as part of the wider multidisciplinary team to help patients maintain independence, physical ability, and quality of life while managing symptoms of life-limiting conditions and treatment side effects.

Using specialist knowledge and skills, physiotherapists support patients with strength, mobility, breathlessness, pain, fatigue, and deconditioning, providing tailored advice and treatment plans to help them live as well as possible.

Our team also focuses on falls prevention, respiratory care, exercise, and moving and handling techniques. With access to specialist equipment, patients can exercise safely under supervision, enabling them to adapt to their condition, manage symptoms, and maintain independence for as long as possible.

Access to this service is by referral from members of the hospice multidisciplinary team. Patients must be known to and receiving active support from a Dougie Mac Palliative Care Nurse.

MPFT Community Services are equipped to provide community physiotherapy or occupational therapy. For patients requiring these services, please contact the MPFT Community Services

For Carers

We offer a range of services for families and carers referred to Dougie Mac, designed to be flexible and personalised so that you can access the care and support that best meets your needs.