Joy Adalia
How far will a hospital go to grant a dying cancer patient her last wish?
Defying protocol to grant Sheila Marsh’s dying wish, the staff of Royal Albert Edward Infirmary in Wigan, Lancashire, the United Kingdom, arranged a visit from her favorite horses to bid her farewell.
On Monday afternoon, they brought Bronwen, her favorite horse, plus another horse to the parking lot of the hospital. They then wheeled Sheila’s bed to the car park so she could say her goodbyes to the beloved horses she loved for over 25 years.
The hospital staff were teary eyed as they watched Sheila, 77, call to Bronwen despite having a hard time speaking. The horse steadily walked towards her, nuzzling her cheeks, and giving her a kiss while the sick grandma smiled in happiness and peace.
After a few moments with her beloved pets, Sheila was wheeled back to her hospital room where she passed away peacefully a few hours later.
Tina, Sheila’s daughter, was very thankful that the staff allowed her mother to say goodbye to her favorite horses. She mentioned how hardworking her mom had been, spending most of her fruitful life at Haydock Park Racecourse where her beloved horses are boarded.
Last week, the hospital already granted Sheila’s wish to say goodbye to one of her dogs; the old lady owns 3 dogs and 6 horses. After she bid farewell to the dog, however, Sheila expressed her wish to also say goodbye to the horses she had looked after in the past 25 years.
Thankfully, the hospital staff understood her feelings and quickly made the preparations to grant her last wish.
“This was obviously extremely important to [Mrs Marsh] and her family and we feel privileged to have been able to provide this support at this crucial stage of her care,” said Pauline Law, Deputy Director of Nursing at the Royal Albert Edward Infirmary in Wigan. “It is absolutely right that we should pull out all the stops to ensure that our patients and their families receive personalised, compassionate and dignified care at the end of their life and this is what we will always strive to achieve.“
