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Despite the care and dedication of doctors and nurses, staying in hospital can still be frightening and disorientating experience for a child. This is why it makes all the difference when a hospital is more than just a place to get treatment.

Candlelighters try and create a ‘home away from home’ environment for our day and in-patients, both in terms of the physical ambiance and the friendliness of our medical and support staff. This can be of great comfort to many families.

Candlelighters provide funding for additional medical, nursing and social support staff. Wherever possible this is on a “pump priming” basis. (NB: Priming is when a charity provides the start up or a new post for an agreed period of time and at the end of this period the NHS takes over the funding).

Candlelighters have set up a wide range of specialist posts over the years.  These include: 

 

Arts & Media Tutor

Candlelighters fund two  creative Arts and Media tutors Tom Madge, (pictured below) and Dave Turpie who work with the young cancer & leukaemia patients  both on the inpatient and outpatient Wards at Leeds general Infirmary

Their work involves the organization of one-to-one and small group projects exploring animation, film- making, photography and image making. Such a broad range of approaches encourages our young patients to experiment .  Tom and Dave are always looking for new and exciting ways to combine media. Animation and film are especially suitable for this. To see an example of the work they and the children have produced, log on to the YouTube link on the home page to see the film about life on Ward 76 made by the children..

The work they do with the young people is aimed at giving them opportunities to explore their own talents and ideas and to work in a positive, free and very flexible way. Working on animations, films and images can be very absorbing and offer enormous potential for developing new skills and ideas, as well as being really good fun and making the time fly by – always a bonus when you're in hospital for a long stretch!

Engaging young people who are being treated for cancer can be a challenge. Creative work requires a lot of mental energy and personal commitment and this can be hard to muster when you're feeling unwell. But  we believe that the necessary spark and energy is almost always there somewhere and that it's the tutors job to create the right conditions for it to emerge. They encourage the young people to experiment with the tools available and  try to encourage the themes and ideas they may wish to explore.

They encourage them to explore their ideas in small steps, feeling their way through the process bit by bit instead of following a plan to a fixed end. In this way I hope to guide them through a creative journey, with each decision made along the way making the work more personal to them. The end result is less important than the process, but it is still a tangible display of that individual’s talents and vitality, a well deserved reward for their efforts and - usually - something they are surprised by and proud of.

My role was born out of two projects  which ran in St James's Hospital School in 2006.  It proved so successul that other Children's Cancer Units now employ Arts & Media Tutors to work with their young patients.

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Social Workers

Nothing can prepare a family for the news that their child has cancer. The diagnosis has a huge life changing impact on the life of the child or young person and everyone around them. Family and friends can be very supportive, but many families require specialist advice and support at this very difficult time. Social workers offer practical and emotional support to help ease the strain and worry. They help the family cope with both the emotional strain of caring for a very sick child and the practical demands of everyday life. This can include support for brothers and sisters, advice regarding employment, seeking appropriate financial support of just offering a listening ear.

The social workers meet the families at the time of diagnosis and will offer support and advice on a range of issues throughout treatment and beyond. How families respond to diagnosis and the level of support they require varies enormously so the service is tailored to meet individual needs.

The Paediatric Oncology Social Workers are employed by Leeds City Council but much of their funding comes from charitable sources. Based in the Outpatient’s Department at St. James’s, the team of six social workers play an important role in the multi-disciplinary team who look after our patients. Candlelighter’s provide funding for two of these posts.

 

We also believe that any child being treated for cancer and their family should be able to take the right medical equipment, beds, and facilities and activities for granted during their hospital stay.  It is so important that a child be made as comfortable as possible while receiving treatment and that they can engage in enjoyable or educational activities when they start to feel a bit better.

The Paediatric Oncology & Haematology Unit in Leeds, to which around 120 new young patients from across Yorkshire are admitted each year, is fully equipped to ensure this is the case. Candlelighters buy most of the equipment, ranging from the sophisticated medical equipment and beds used by the children, to toys, books, films and arts and crafts supplies.  Family facilities are also provided.  It is so important that parents can stay close to their child and families are made to feel comfortable on their visits to the hospital.

The Unit recently moved from  St James’s to Leeds General Infirmary.  Leeds is a regional centre for many specialist children’s services, which  used to be split  between St James’s’ University Hospital and Leeds General Infirmary. This meant that very sick children often had to travel across the city by ambulance to access the service they need. 

With the exception of the paediatric radiotherapy department which is is based in Bexley Wing, all children's services moved to Leeds General Infirmary in 2010.  Candlelighters ran a fundraising campaign to raise an extra £500,000 to ensure that the facilities for our young patients and their families were as good as those they enjoyed at St. James'. country 

Read more about The Big Move.

Want to contribute to the fundraising effort? Donate now.

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