Aamar Arain
Aamar Arain, son of Saeed, tells us about his experience: "In the lead up to dad’s diagnosis, we’d been passed between hospitals whilst we tried to establish what was wrong with him, and it was a frustrating time for everyone.
"It felt a bit fragmented. There was a lack of co-ordination and communication between different consultants. We were repeating information and having to constantly badger people and make a nuisance of ourselves to get information.
"In the end the diagnosis was terminal and we had to deal with that. Marie Curie was fantastic. The end was more important than what had gone on before.
"I think often when family members are ill, Asians tend to keep it ‘in-house’. It’s tradition that we take care of our own. It’s difficult to go out and ask for help. I knew my mum couldn’t cope on her own with dad at home because he was bed bound and the practical aspect of managing him was difficult.
"We recognised that he needed expert care around the clock. We’d had recommendations from friends about the excellent care at the Marie Curie Hospice in Cardiff, so we made the decision for him to go there, where he died peacefully in December 2013.
"I suppose other people from ethnic minority groups may think ‘You wouldn’t get the care that you would get at home’, but I completely disagree with that. I think he got a better quality of care at the Marie Curie hospice than he would have got at home.
"We had a lot of family travel to see dad at the hospice during his final days. We were given access to the communal prayer room, and the hospice chef was able to prepare halal meals for dad.
"The care he received was amazing. Nothing was too much trouble for him. The nurses kept us informed, they made sure he was ok and looked after the little things. He was always smiling, even right at the end.
"Saeed’s daughter Umaira Chaudhary said: We will always be grateful to Marie Curie because they did something that we couldn’t do with our dad. I would encourage other people to look at their options and do their research, because our experience was fabulous and we wouldn’t change a thing."