The Malta Hospice Movement, which has been caring for terminal cancer patients for 20 years, will next year extend its services to all those suffering from an incurable disease.

A piece of government land in Pembroke has been earmarked for a 25-bed hospice that should go some way to alleviate some of the burden on health services, movement general manager Antoniette Shah said.

Discussions are also being held with Mater Dei Hospital to introduce a palliative care team, which will be involved in the care given to terminally ill patients.

"The team would support the staff in dealing with patients and their families," Ms Shah said.

For these plans to materialise, the movement, which depends heavily on donations and voluntary work, needs help from the authorities.

"We need a lot of money to build it and to run the hospice," Ms Shah said.

This was reiterated by movement chairman Vincent Zammit, who said the hospice could not extend its services without government's help.

At the moment, the government gives the movement less than 30 per cent of its annual expenditure, which amounts to more than €500,000 to care for some 800 patients annually.

Its expenses are expected to go up substantially once it starts offering palliative care to patients suffering from other diseases, apart from cancer and motor neurone disease.

Dr Zammit said all patients with terminal disease should be given the same treatment, and it was not right for cancer patients, who made up some 20 per cent of terminally ill patients, to be given palliative care while others were not.

"We want more awareness on the importance of palliative care among politicians," he said, adding the movement saved the government a lot of money by helping patients who would otherwise seek hospital care.

During a conference organised by the movement, Health Parliamentary Secretary Joe Cassar said the government commended the hospice initiative to extend its services.

He said those who had to use its services always commented about how fortunate their relatives were in the last days of their lives.

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