Memories of Moya Cole: Robin Hunter

Robin Hunter, former director at The Christie in Manchester and a longtime supporter of St Ann’s Hospice, has called Dr Moya Cole the closest person that he knew who justified becoming a saint.

Moya Cole co-founded St Ann’s alongside the then Bishop of Manchester William Greer. Her hard work in advocating and campaigning for a hospice in Greater Manchester led to St Ann’s opening its doors in 1971.

Before co-founding St Ann’s Hospice, Moya worked at The Christie, and this is how she knew Robin.

The Christie are leading experts in cancer care, research and education based in Manchester.

Robin has said that Moya was “gentle, empathetic with her patients, her relatives and junior doctors” during her time at The Christie.

“She came to Manchester from Northern Ireland and lived just up the road from The Christie, she dedicated her life to her work.

“She was an excellent teacher of junior doctors,” he added.

According to Robin, Moya was nothing more than gentle and sympathetic.

“She embraced the concept of palliative care developed in London by Cecily Saunders, and she managed to achieve financial support from Manchester churches and charities so successfully that she led the development of two hospices in Greater Manchester.

“These two hospices became centres of training for doctors and nurses in end-of-life care,” he said.