03.10.2024
Dougie Mac pulled together a wedding ceremony and reception after patient, Michaela, expressed a desire to marry her long term partner, Alan.
53 year-old Michaela was diagnosed with Stage 4 cervical cancer in April 2022. She began treatment and needed a hysterectomy, but further tests revealed that the cancer had spread and was also in her throat. Michaela had surgery, followed by further treatment, but at the end of her treatment scans showed that the cancer had moved to her liver and lungs.
“I’ve had four cancers in less than two years. I was told that my cancer was incurable and there wasn’t any further treatment available as my body wasn’t responding, so my only option was palliative care.
“The hospital referred me to Dougie Mac and Chris, one of their palliative care nurses, started to visit me at home. I was really uncomfortable and finding it difficult to eat, I’d hardly eaten for ten days and I was so weak, so we called Chris and she suggested that I come in to Dougie Mac’s Inpatient Unit. I was desperate, I just wanted to feel better but I didn’t want to go to the hospital, so I agreed to give it a try.
“I’ve been here for a couple of weeks and it’s been absolutely amazing. The doctor changed my medication, which has made such a big difference and I’m eating and drinking again now. The whole team have been wonderful, I can press my buzzer at any time of the day or night and someone will come straight to me.”
Michaela and her partner Alan met more than twenty years ago at Bingo – Michaela was a Bingo caller and Alan went to play with his parents. Each week they would have a quick chat and eventually exchanged numbers, their first date was on a bench in a park and they hit it off instantly.
Before she was admitted to Dougie Mac, Michaela and Alan had been planning to get married. Although they’ve been together for more than twenty years, they’d never got around to tying the knot, however as Michaela’s condition worsened they wanted to make it a priority to create special memories for themselves and their families.
“I mentioned to one of the nurses that we’d been thinking about getting married and asked whether it would be possible to do it at the hospice. They said it was and we could arrange for a registrar to come in to do the ceremony, so we decided to go ahead. Dougie Mac put a post out on their social media asking for help and we could never have imagined the care and kindness everyone has shown us, we’re so grateful.
“I’ll be getting picked up and taken to get my make-up done, then I’ll come back to the hospice to get ready, someone even has donated personalised robes and slippers for me and my bridesmaids to wear.
“We’ll be getting married in Dougie Mac’s spiritual space, the registrar will conduct the service and Martin, Dougie Mac’s Spiritual, Pastoral and Religious Care Leader, will read a passage which has been written by my Aunty. We have more than twenty family and friends coming in and we’re having a meal in one of the rooms at the hospice which someone has offered to come in and dress for us, I can’t wait to see it. The kitchen team at the hospice are doing a meal for us all and we’ve chosen steak pie, chips and peas, followed by jam roly-poly and custard.
“We just can’t believe that so many people have chipped in to make our day special, we’re so overwhelmed that friends and family, as well as complete strangers, are all helping to give us a day to remember. I’m really looking forward to it and I can’t wait to see everyone. But none of it would be possible without the amazing care team here – without them I just wouldn’t be well enough to be getting married. They’re all amazing.”