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Carers cream tea party held to recognise their work

20 June 2011

Carers were invited to a cream tea party at Saint Francis Hospice, to celebrate the vital contribution they make to their families and the community. Sixty carers attended the afternoon organised by the Family Support Service on 14 June, to coincide with National Carers Week (June 13-19). 

Pupils from Hall Mead School attended, and performed during the afternoon, while the carers and their families enjoyed a delicious cream tea, took part in a quiz and a raffle.

Carers receive extensive support from Saint Francis Hospice, as part of its holistic approach to patient care. An 8 week carer’s programme is on offer, providing information on subjects such as nutrition, moving and handling, as well as giving them access to peer to peer support from each other around common issues of being a carer. All carers are offered counselling, advice and support from the social work team, and complementary therapy.

Among the carers was Phyllis Whymark, from Brentwood, who was joined by her husband Dave, who has Motor Neurone Disease.

“If I want help, I know that Saint Francis Hospice is there,” she said. “I have visits from a member of the Family Support Team, and I go to the hospice for complementary therapy, including aromatherapy and back massages.”

“It takes her away from the problem that is caring,” said Dave. “As sufferer I’m absolutely amazed about the support that’s available from the hospice. Every day, becoming disabled is a challenge, and you can’t overcome it alone, so that’s why these people are so important. Until you’re stricken with this sort of disease, you don’t realise that there is a whole range of people who are looking after people with this disease. You face absolute terror, and the hospice is there to support you and your carer, so you can set the fear aside and enjoy the major remaining part of your life.”

Alan Clark from Harold Park also joined the carers with his wife Jean, who has Motor Neurone Disease. He said: “As a carer you sometimes feel totally helpless, but the hospice is there for you. Jean goes into the day hospice on Wednesdays, which gives me a few hours respite, to do an ‘Alan’ thing. Without services like those the hospice provides, carers would be run into the ground.”
William Meyers, from Cranham, devoured his cream tea with his wife Ellen, who has cancer. She attends the day hospice on a Wednesday, and William receives counselling from staff at the hospice.

“The hospice helps us both – I can’t speak highly enough about the counselling I receive, and every Wednesday Ellen is up and raring to go, she loves going to the day hospice,” said William. “Without the hospice I’d be lost, I don’t know how I’d get through this. They’re helping me to deal with and come to terms with my wife’s illness.”

Sandy Lawless, a family support worker said: “Hundreds of organisations across the country are putting on events to recognise the work carers do, and Saint Francis Hospice wanted to join in. A lot of carers say to me, we’re not carers, we’re wives, husbands, sons or daughters – and they are, but they’re also people that care. Carers save the government £119billion a year. I hope the carers accepted the tea party as a way of us thanking them for working with us, as we work with them in partnership. We appreciate everything that they do.”
 

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