A palliative care nurse has admitted their job is 'really, really hard' as a result of the coronavirus pandemic because they're unable to be tactile with their patients.

Jenna Norris, of

A palliative care nurse has admitted their job is 'really, really hard' as a result of the coronavirus pandemic because they're unable to be tactile with their patients.

Jenna Norris, of Stratford-upon-Avon, works in end of life care, offering medical and emotional support, at the Shakespeare Hospice.

She makes twice daily visits to her patients in the community, and told how there is currently a higher than normal demand for palliative care.

While her team is 'coping well', Jenna said they are struggling with the ban on physical contact and are forced to have difficult conversations through a protective mask and visor.

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Jenna Norris, of Stratford-upon-Avon, works in end of life care, offering medical and emotional support, at the Shakespeare Hospice

Nurses who are making home visits are required to wear aprons, gloves, a mask and a visor as protection from Covid-19. 

Jenna told Sky News: 'We're normally very tactile with our patients and their families. We use touch a lot as a method of comfort... giving someone a hug or holding their hand.

'Not being able to do that at the moment is really, really hard. Also our job involves a lot of difficult conversations, and having to have those conversations through a mask or a visor is really tough and just feels really unnatural.

'It feels like it's just a barrier between our communication that we're not used to and it feels really impersonal.'

Jenna said she enjoys her job because she is passionate about end of life care and told how everyone has 'really pulled together' at the hospice.

While her team is 'coping well', Jenna said they are struggling with the ban on physical contact and are forced to have difficult conversations through a mask and visor

She also paid tribute to her NHS colleagues in the community who are helping to ensure that everyone who is requiring end of life care at home gets what they need.

'We're very good at supporting each other and reflecting on things, and that's needed even more at the moment,' Jenna added.   

Each one of Britain's hospices serves a catchment area; patients will be referred by their oncologist and palliative-care team to their local facility. 

Currently, only a third of the funding for hospices comes from the NHS. The rest is raised via fundraising, charity shops and donations. 

Jenna paid tribute to her NHS colleagues in the community who are helping to ensure that everyone who is requiring end of life care at home gets what they need

In August last year, Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged to invest £25million in palliative care across the UK. 

Earlier this month the charity Sue Ryder, which runs four neurological rehabilitation centres and seven hospices across the UK as well as a bereavement service for 25,000 people a month, warned it may have to close its 11 hospices and rehabilitation centres after taking a huge hit from the coronavirus crisis. 

It launched an extraordinary appeal to save its end-of-life services for thousands of families after it was forced to shut its 450 shops and cancel fundraising events.