Auriga Services is proud to support a large teaching hospital in England that provides a wide range of high quality care to its patients to improve the health and well-being of the communities it serves.
Renal patients often experience a significant lifestyle change due to their condition, particularly those who have dialysis. The treatment schedule often leads to reduced working hours and sometimes job loss, which can cause a huge change to the individual’s income and financial situation.
Tackling the non-medical struggles
Patients often face many challenges, such as debt, social isolation, and with the change in income, there are often challenges in meeting basic needs, such as heating and food. A senior manager in renal services commented, “We found that patients were often in a lot of debt and embarrassed to talk about their money. Frequently, they were hungry and struggling socially, all because of this huge, sudden change in their lifestyle.”
Initially, the hospital relied on social workers but found that they did not have enough resources to help all their patients’ support needs. In 2016, the hospital partnered with Auriga Services to begin to address these challenges for their patients. The senior clinician who initially set up the partnership with Auriga commented: “In the 10 years running the dialysis unit, Auriga had the most the biggest positive impact on patients and their families out of everything that we provide, transplantation, dialysis, Auriga was the one thing we put in place that had the biggest impact on patients.”
Auriga services have been able to provide comprehensive financial welfare support, including Income Maximisation and Debt Advice. The senior manager at the hospital highlighted the impact of these support services: “Auriga helps our patients through an incredibly difficult time. Their team can offer them support outside of healthcare, and that is vital for our patients.”
Making a real difference to people’s lives
The results of the partnership have led to significant positive outcomes. From April 2018 to January 2025, Auriga received 3,690 patient referrals from the hospital. During this period, the Auriga team has been able to identify £6,800,293 in additional income, savings, and grants for the renal patients, with £4,016,129 of this being realised income. The highest single award for a patient during this partnership has been £45,400, which helps to provide financial relief to cover critical expenses and improve their quality.
Looking at the last 2 financial years, in 2022-2023, the highest financial gain for one single patient was £12,200, and in 2023-2024 this figure was £14,600. The patient referral numbers for welfare benefits and income maximisation have doubled from 328 patients in 2022-23 to 728 patient referrals in 2023-24.
Many of the patients supported have expressed how grateful they are to have received this service. One patient who received Auriga’s support commented, “Without Auriga, I would have gone homeless because financially I wouldn’t have been able to survive. It was like they were angels sent from heaven.”
The power of partnership
The collaboration between the hospital and Auriga Services has provided another layer of support for renal patients, meaning that both their medical needs are being addressed, as well as the financial challenges that they face. The ongoing partnership provides a holistic and lasting impact.
When reflecting upon the impact and key values of the partnership, the senior manager at the hospital commented, “Of all our service offerings, Auriga has the biggest impact on our patients. I can’t emphasise enough how important this partnership has been. If you are thinking about partnering with Auriga, I’d say just do it; it’s a no-brainer. If you can help improve people’s lives in any way, do it.”
