A Hospice of Hope for Moldova

The good news is that we have now reached 25% of the total estimated cost ($5 million) for the new hospice project and we hope that the GlobalGiving community will help us to reach 50%, before we go to the big international institutions for the final 50%. 

We have recently sent out the tenders for the concept design and planning stage and will receive these back by mid-August. This will help us to be able to increase the visibility of the project and move to the next stage.

Meanwhile, the Hospices of Hope Moldova team in Chisinau is caring for a growing number of patients in the community, and we also continuing to support the mobile teams in Soroca, Orhei and Balti. 

Anna, our CEO,  wrote this story about a patient she visited:

"Vasile is just 41 years old, a husband and father of a five-year-old daughter and living with advanced bowel cancer in rural Moldova. He and his family live with his in-laws in a house bought over 40 years ago. Years of financial hardship have left it in a state of disrepair. His bedroom is little more than a cupboard – just large enough for a bed, with no window and very little natural light. 

When he was first diagnosed, he underwent chemotherapy. After just four sessions, the cancer spread to his spine, leaving him paralysed. With no further treatment available, he was discharged from the state healthcare system and, as his family described it, left "to fate." Like many families in Moldova, they simply could not afford healthcare, even from the state. The family survives on the equivalent of around €150 per month and said that a single consultation with a doctor costs more than this.

When our hospice team first met him, he had already developed severe pressure sores as a result of being confined to bed. While they cannot completely reverse the damage, they visit regularly to change his dressings, manage his pain and prevent the wounds from deteriorating further. Without specialist equipment, the family have found extraordinary ways to care for him. Unable to afford a hoist, they have tied ropes around the bed so he can help pull himself into a different position and assist the nurse during dressing changes. 

During the warmer months, his greatest wish is simply to spend time outdoors. Every morning, his father-in-law carefully carries him outside and settles him on an old, worn sofa, before carrying him back inside again each evening. For a few hours he can feel the warmth of the sun and be surrounded by his family rather than the four walls of his small bedroom. 

Today, thanks to hospice care, he receives regular medical support, pain management, wound care and emotional support, all provided free of charge. His family no longer faces this journey alone. 

Sadly, his story is far from unique. Across Moldova, many people living with life-limiting illnesses have little or no access to palliative care. Families often shoulder the burden alone, without the equipment, medication or professional support they desperately need."

As Anna has said, there is a huge need to improve access to palliative care in the country and this project will not only provide the first dedicated hospice facility in Chisinau, but will also be a teaching centre for palliative care, where doctors, nurses and other health care professionals from across the country can receive training in order to improve quality of life for the many thousands of patients who are diagnosed with cancer and other severe illnesses each year. 

I also visited Chisinau a few weeks ago to attend the American-Moldovan convention, which for the first time was held in Chisinau. I was able to make contact with some successful business people and a journalist who now live in the US, and we are hoping that this will translate into more support for the hospice. 

We recently held our annual sponsored cycle event in Moldova, which raised. $15,000 for the charity. I was also very encouraged to receive a donation of $20,000 from a friend of one of the cyclists who lives in the U.S. and who had lost a family member with cancer and knew how vital it was to support this project. 

 Thank you for your interest,

Graham Perolls

Founder and Development Director, Hospices of Hope

Links:

• Impact review 2025