A NEW FACE IN FAMILY SUPPORT SERVICES

“I was at Southampton Hospital when I saw a Julia’s House Team Nurse Role advertised. I had always been interested in Palliative and End of Life Care, so applied. I got the job and haven’t looked back! Over the last several years, I have been privileged to work in various Lead Nurse roles,” says Beth.

A Holistic Approach

She continues: “Most recently and during the pandemic, I was one of the Dorset Community Lead Nurses. Overnight, we switched 100 per cent of our care into the community. The support required from our care team during uncertain times and when lives were threatened was unfounded. Teamwork was essential to ensure all of the families continued to receive the best care. From collecting critical medicines for isolating families to providing Zoom play sessions and respite in full Personal Protective clothing. So much changed for the families during the pandemic and we identified a need for new services, so I was asked to develop the Family Support Worker Service.

“This was a huge honour and one which I took on with great enthusiasm and excitement. Working alongside the clinical nursing team enables us to provide a fully holistic approach, which is centred around the child we

Lead Nurse.

are supporting. I became passionate about how clinical care experience could combine and benefit the wider family support we provide, really enhancing the care we give to children and families. I think the perfect example of how these two aspects of our care are brought together are events such as our family garden party and JH Rocks, our hospice-based festival. These events can only work because they involve our entire care team. They are the perfect combination of everything we do and the families love them! The enjoyment of these events, starting the Family Support Worker Service and seeing the potential opportunities to be able to support the whole family, inspired me to change direction with my career. So, when the opportunity came up to apply for the Family Support Services Lead Nurse position in the team, I went for it and got it!

Wrapping Arms Around The Family

The Family Support Services Team comprises Family Support Workers, Sibling Workers, Play Workers, Complementary Therapists, an Emotional Health and Wellbeing Practitioner and wider health and wellbeing services such as counselling. It surrounds the whole family, as the impact of caring

24/7 for a seriously ill child affects everyone – one of the families said “it’s like a hug around the whole family”. The team also work closely with the named nurse. Beth explains: “We get feedback from the Julia’s House nurses on a day-today basis about the changing needs of the families they’re supporting, as circumstances can transform overnight. I feel now more than ever, in times of uncertainty, it is imperative to be able to support the families in diverse ways. We have to be responsive and work together to provide the family with what they need in that moment in time.”

The demand for family support services has never been greater: “The families have come straight out of the pandemic and straight into a cost of living crisis. It’s an incredibly difficult time for them,” notes Beth.

“Helping them to access financial support right now is vital. We give practical and emotional help too –there’s a lot of apprehension about how they’re going to meet the needs of their seriously ill children, charge vital equipment and feed their family. Staying up to date with local and national offers of support is paramount and being able to pass these onto our families is vital.”

When The Worst Happens

When the worst happens and a child is at the end of their life, Family Support Services work alongside the nursing team: “Our sibling workers spend time with brothers and sisters, going for walks or being a listening ear. The Complementary Therapists can provide treatments for the child to help them stay comfortable as well as for the wider family to help them through such a difficult time. Play Workers help with play and our Family Support Workers can help with a wide range of support for families, for example, navigating around benefits paperwork, which often suddenly cease when a child dies.

“Losing a child is the worst thing that can happen to a family. Being able to offer all that the Family Support Service can provide from a child’s initial referral throughout their journey is a privilege and is what motivates me.”