Care in the community, by the community
2006-12-07
THE Drakenstein Hospice has dreamt up a wonderful new concept.
They aim to establish a community-based response and support centre in Fairyland for adults and children affected by the HIV/Aids epidemic.
The Butterfly House idea started in April last year at Drakenstein Hospice, who at the time, looked after more than 265 patients a month in an area covering the whole of the Drakenstein health district.
The hospice staff has been finding it increasingly difficult to manage the increase of HIV/Aids patients.
The introduction of anti-retrovirals (ARVs) in February 2004 brought with it the promise of turning a death sentence into a chronic illness and therefore changing the management of Aids patients.
Long-term chronic illness confronts us with not only on-going active symptom management, but also the accompanying social, emotional and spiritual issues of unemployment, poverty and lack of employment skills and experience.
The staff experience major personal and professional conflict around: How to manage holistic patient care, which includes managing poverty, hunger and unemployment with limited resources?
How to leave patients at home (because of space constraints) when day care is their only outing for the week and the only place where they feel heard?
How to manage symptoms of ARV’s when there is little understanding as to what they are and how to empower people to ‘live’ with Aids?
Joanne Whelan and Jennifer Becker, two doctoral psychology exchange students from Denver, Colorado, where given the task of finding a way to manage the increased demands on Hospice’s service delivery.
After visiting various day care centres and consulting widely, the Butterfly House concept was born.
The need was identified for an interim home where children can be looked after and adults can be empowered with skills and confidence to look after their children - a place to refer patients who need to find a way to ‘live’ with a previous diagnosis of dying.
Various ‘wings’ are envisaged as places of safety where orphans and vulnerable children can be looked after by foster mothers with the assistance of an educare worker and guided and supported by a social worker and a teacher.
Funding came from an unexpected source.
A group from a family counselling agency in South-Trondelag,
Norway, travelled to a workshop in Cape Town.
They visited Drakenstein Hospice and were so moved by what they heard and saw that they decided to do something to help.
“The way the staff care for their patients really moved me very deeply,” says Anthony Hawke, who played a central role in establishing this link.
The group wants to support the building of Butterfly House which is to be a day care centre for children and a work centre for adults.
The group has thus far managed to collect 500 000 Krone (about R585 000), half the amount needed to build the project.
Elizabeth Scrimgeour, CEO of Drakenstein Hospice, held a meeting with the community of Fairyland recently, to discuss the concept with them.
They hope to start early next year with the project. Builders form Norway will come to Paarl in June to help with the building work.
Local people will be trained to help.
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