Local community works with Hospice Chaplain to respect religious rite

Imam Rizwan Rawat, chaplain at Michael Sobell House and part of the Spiritual Care Team, was recently involved in organising a Muslim burial over the last week of a woman’s life. Here, he discusses the importance of a quick burial in Islam, the organisation of the burial and how working with the Watford Muslim Community […]
Harlington Hospice’s Child & Adolescent Bereavement Service Launches Pilot Project on Neurodiversity and Grief.

Harlington Hospice’s Child and Adolescent Bereavement Service (CABS) has successfully secured National Lottery Community Funding for a project about Neurodiversity and grief, specifically focusing on Psychoeducation and Parent and Carer Support. Since receiving this grant CABS has launched its first series of Parent Support Groups taking place from March till June 2023. In the past […]
Nahida makes it to Makkah with support from the Hospice

After planning to visit Makkah in Saudi Arabia with her brother and daughter, Nahida found that the symptoms of her cancer were making everyday life difficult to manage. In January 2023, Nahida came to stay at the Michael Sobell Hospice where she was able to work with the Hospice team to bring these distressing symptoms […]
Holistic Healthcare and Breaking Silences

Dr Ros Taylor MBE has been Medical Director at Harlington Hospice and the Michael Sobell Hospice since January 2020. Recently, she spoke with our Communications Officer, Harriet Steele, about how the medical landscape has developed over her career, the importance of holism in medical care and the role of hospices in breaking the silence around […]
Our CQC inspection result

On 4 July 2022, the Michael Sobell Hospice had its first Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection since it reopened in January 2020. Since its reopening, Harlington Hospice have been running the clinical palliative and end-of-life services at the Michael Sobell Hospice inpatient unit in Northwood. The Care Quality Commission are a regulatory body in the […]
Eight years of enhancing lives

Bhavini Pandya has been an Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy Assistant at the Michael Sobell Hospice in Northwood for almost eight years. Here, she talks about her work and how the hospice’s Rehab Team supports local people who are facing advancing illness to continue living life in a way that is meaningful to them. I’m an […]
The death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

We are saddened to hear about the passing of Queen Elizabeth II. Our aim is that everybody should be able to die in a place of their choosing, be that at home or in a hospice. We are comforted to hear that The Queen died peacefully at home, surrounded by her family. Photograph credit BBC […]
A full recovery and a wish for ‘hospice in a bottle’

After a tragic family bereavement, Catherine Szelewski found herself turning to alcohol to cope. As her mental, spiritual, and physical health fell into a deep decline, Catherine was referred to the Michael Sobell Hospice to receive end-of-life care. Then, miraculously, she made a full recovery after less than one week. This is her story. “My […]
Beryl Howard Obituary – as seen in The Guardian

‘Beryl Howard, my Grandma, who has died aged 85, was a palliative care nurse who rose through the ranks to become manager of the pioneering Michael Sobell hospice, based at Mount Vernon hospital, in Northwood, Middlesex. ‘Beryl was the first nurse to be on the management board of the hospital; as a manager she was […]
Family pay tribute to Hospice that cared for wonderful daughter and sister in her final months

Georgi Baker, sister of Kellie ‘Kel’ Hayes, who sadly passed away at Michael Sobell Hospice in November 2020, after battling cervical cancer, aged just 38, speaks candidly about the care she experienced during her final months.    “Kel had a short stay in Michael Sobell Hospice in early 2020 as she was very poorly and needed […]