Claire Hudson Cooper looks back over the last 12 months, her first year as Julia’s House Director of Care...
16 March 2020. I was about to become Director of Care at Julia’s House, as Ali Acaster who held the role for 17 years was taking a deserved retirement. I have been a nurse at Julia’s House for 10 years but little did I know what was in store for all of us in the 12 months that lay ahead.
I had planned some changes, some new ideas, but it all went out of the window that night. We suddenly faced the biggest challenge we’ve ever had as a charity. And one of the toughest experiences for the children and families we support, who already face unbelievably hard challenges every single day.
From day one, regular contact was vital as so many of the families went into immediate shielding as their children are so vulnerable, others were struggling with no school provision and many of the other care services they relied on no longer available. They went into total isolation overnight. We called all the families on a weekly basis, doing door step drops of medicines and groceries and just having a reassuring chat with stressed and exhausted parents who knew we understood what they were going through.
"THE FAMILIES WENT INTO TOTAL ISOLATION OVERNIGHT"
Claire Hudson-Cooper, Director of Care
We started a programme of virtual support for the families, which has been a real lifeline for those who have had to shield throughout the pandemic. One parent described the sessions as a ‘beacon of light’ in the day, giving her the opportunity to hand over the responsibility of keeping home schooling and entertainment going even for a short while and take a few minutes for a hot drink. Something so everyday for us, but virtually impossible when you are caring 24/7.
We were able to see siblings too and give them some time to themselves and someone familiar to talk to when they needed support. That was so important for the children as they get to know their nurses and carers so well, and the families too. We were a familiar reassuring face, in the midst of all the isolation and fear.
"OUR COMMUNITY SERVICE CAME INTO IT'S OWN"
Claire Hudson-Cooper, Director of Care
We were already providing 65 per cent of our service in the community, so in many ways when we went into lockdown our service came into its own. We were quickly able to adapt our care with extra risk assessments and PPE as well as additional staffing.
Advice for PPE was changing hourly in the first few months. All the equipment we could normally access easily was no longer available. I’m so incredibly grateful to our volunteers who drove to Plymouth every week to collect PPE – without their weekly trips we wouldn’t have been able to provide our care.
There’s been a lot going on behind the scenes as well from calls to families to check for COVID symptoms to weekly tests for our nurses and carers. We’ve had our vaccinations now too. The families are still understandably fearful, so we are doing all we can to reassure them.
SUPPORTING THE NHS
We have been working in close partnership with the NHS – keeping vulnerable children safe and well at home and out of hospital where we can, being on stand-by to provide non-urgent hospital services in our hospices and seconding our nursing staff. Our hospices closed, opened and closed again. I feel so proud of the resilience of all the care team – they’ve coped with so much uncertainty and done such an amazing job.
I’ve been inspired too by the strength and courage of all of the families. The children we support have such complex medical needs. Many have deteriorated and been unable to access physiotherapy, swimming and other therapies that are imperative to their health. A number have been in and out of hospital too. That’s been very hard for us to hear and see and we have done all we can to help them at home and provide the complex care they need, as well as support the wider family.
WHAT NEXT?
Even now, a year on, no day is the same. But there is hope with the roll out of the vaccine. As a service, we are more flexible and responsive to families’ needs than ever before and we are taking on new children too, extending our support into the heart of communities across Dorset and Wiltshire. I’m sure the next 12 months will be just as challenging as the last!
But, I know we will keep on caring, whatever happens.
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