An appeal has gone out for people from across Norfolk to help celebrate a healthcare unit’s special link with its Ethiopian ‘twin’ by pledging an item or experience to go under the hammer to raise money to improve vital end-of-life care. 

Staff at Norwich’s Priscilla Bacon Centre, which is run by Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust (NCH&C), are asking for donations to auction later this year to raise funds for Hospice Ethiopia. The call comes after the two organisations formally linked through a twinning programme in 2011, which aims to make it easier for staff to share best practice while improving care for patients in Ethiopia and raising awareness of palliative care among professionals and the public in Africa.

The auction is the latest in a long line of charity events organised by staff at the centre, who have raised more than £15,000 in their own time through sponsored walks and other activities to enhance the care their colleagues in Africa are able to provide. In addition, NCH&C staff have also shared their knowledge and expertise by completing educational visits to Hospice Ethiopia, which cares for patients with HIV, AIDS and cancer in their own homes.

They are now hoping businesses and individuals from across the county will dig deep and donate promises – whether large and small – which will go under the hammer at the Bishop’s Palace in Norwich on Saturday, October 11th 2014. They are looking for anything from tickets to local tourist attractions to gifts from businesses and special experiences, and would be happy to receive anything from promises of haircuts to hair-raising roller coaster rides.

Dr Katie Soden, Lead Consultant at NCH&C’s Priscilla Bacon Centre, said: “We are always looking for ways to raise further funds for Hospice Ethiopia, and thought this auction promises would be the ideal way to do just that.

“Less than 1% of people in Ethiopia receive any treatment for their cancer, so they are in desperate need of good end-of-life care. Our partners in Addis Ababa have also had to shut their inpatient beds due to lack of funding, and need as much support as possible to continue with their enhanced community-based service.

“The twinning with Hospice Ethiopia has given us an excellent opportunity to share working practices, as well as hearing about the different approaches that they take to improve the quality of life for their patients which we could introduce back home in Norfolk.

“Our staff have worked extremely hard to support the charity, and have held some fantastic events to raise much-needed funds. We’ve been given tremendous support from our Norfolk community, and hope that local people will be able to help us once more with prizes for our auction later this year.”

Anyone who would like to donate an item to the auction of promises should email [email protected] Tickets for the auction will be available later this year.

For more information about Hospice Ethiopia, visit www.hospiceethiopia.com.