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Home Ground
Aberystwyth hospital serves a rural area with poor or non-existent public transport services. For many years there was no psycho-social support in the NHS Trust for those needing palliative help for cancer.
The answer is Tŷ Geraint, a houselike building just outside the main hospital complex offering psychological, psycho-social and complementary support. There are also regular art therapy sessions. The building acts as a hub for therapists who visit patients in their own homes.
Whether a patient needs advice on financial matters, symptom control, making decisions about treatment, self help strategies or more complex psychological or emotional concerns the referrals move seamlessly across disciplines and cater for the changing needs and their geographical location. Referrals come from primary care, secondary care, specialist nurses, district nurses and the local cancer charity. People can also self refer. On arrival, a therapist will design and plan the package of care they need.
Where there is a skill mix that involves the physical and psychological patients report feeling confident in the service and pleased not to have to bother their GP or consultant with an anxiety, and can feel reassured whilst they wait for their next appointment. The complementary therapist is also a trained chemotherapy nurse.
The service also helps doctors, nurses and volunteers to deal better with the psychological effects that a cancer diagnosis has on patients. Courses include recognising depression in cancer patients and a study day for junior doctors on breaking bad news.
Recently, Tŷ Geraint ran a film project in which six cancer survivors talked about their experience. At first staff feared that no-one would want to take part in such a revealing project - in fact, all the patients approached were eager to do it. The result is Home Ground - an online snapshot invaluable for other patients who are at the beginning of the cancer journey.
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Home Ground: read stories from cancer survivors
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