Family Support
The Family Support team help our patients and their loved ones with the non-medical issues that sometimes run alongside life limiting illness. In many cases our emotions, social situation and our spiritual or religious beliefs can make living with a serious illness even more difficult; the Family Support team are here to help people work through these issues offering help, support, guidance and a friendly shoulder to cry on.
Who can the Family Support team help?
The Dove House Hospice Family Support team can help the patient (anyone who uses any of the services here at the hospice), the patient's family, the patient's friends and any carers. Basically the team can help anyone who is connected to the patient even if they're not direct family and even if they are children.
What kind of help can the Family Support team offer?
The team offers many different kinds of help and, like all of the services at Dove House Hospice, their approach is person centred and each individual is treated differently depending on their needs.
The team help with:
- money worries and legal issues
- emotional issues
- stress
- religious or spiritual questions
- housing problems if a patient needs to move because of their illness
- grief
- fear
- family problems
- bereavement difficulties
The Family Support team aims to help any of the non-medical pressures and worries that a patient or those involved with them might have however complicated it may be. The above list is examples of how the team can help but if you have a problem that is not listed they will still endeavour to work it out with you. All the help the Family Support team offer is free of charge.
How do the Family Support team help?
At the outset a member of the team will meet with a patient or family member and will listen to their worries and concerns. It is natural that during times of difficulty the person might find it difficult to talk about how they feel and may want to cry or shout or remain silent - the team do not judge anyone who they meet and will work with them, in their own time, to work through any worries, fears or concerns.
There are many ways the team will work it might start with an informal chat, be a private one to one meeting or even a group session if appropriate. The team will meet with people at the hospice, in the comfort of the person's own home or in the local community.
The Family Support team also work with other external agencies including government agencies, care homes, external nursing services etc. to ensure that the patient and their loved ones are getting the best available help at an extremely difficult time.
How can I get the help of the Family Support team?
To access the help and support of the Family Support team ask any member of staff looking after you or your loved one or contact the Medical Secretaries by calling 01482 784343, email medical@dovehouse.org.uk or visit our referrals page by clicking here .
For more information about how we help families please visit our Information for Families page