The Sick Kids Friends Foundation Drop in Centre - Unique Centre will provide vital support for some of Scotland's sickest children
A unique centre that will provide invaluable help and support to many of Scotland's most seriously ill children was opened officially on Saturday May 20th .
The Sick Kids Drop in Centre, situated next to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh, is the first of its kind in the UK. It aims to do for children and their families what the successful Maggie's Centres have done for cancer sufferers.
The centre will provide a safe haven where children and families can meet others in a similar situation and feel they are not alone. It will help children with life limiting or long term illnesses such as leukaemia, cancer, cystic fibrosis, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, spinal problems, neurological and respiratory conditions.
Understandably these children and families fear what the future might hold. The centre will support them through the difficult times and help them cope with their problems by providing access to information, offering specific services such as counselling and complementary therapies and organising a range of activities, classes and other informal support.
It is the latest initiative from the Sick Kids Friends Foundation, a charity which has raised over £8 million in the past 12 years to improve the treatment and care offered to sick children. The centre has cost £135,000 to establish and annual running costs will be £150,000 a year. The Foundation is continuing its fundraising efforts to meet the on-going running costs.
The centre hopes to help at least 600 children and their families in its first year rising to around 1500 after three years.
Graeme Millar, Chairman of the Sick Kids friends Foundation said: "Every family's needs are different - these will vary from wanting a quiet place away from the hospital to have a cup of tea, to wanting help with the minefield of information they may face, to learning relaxation techniques.
From the work we have already done with children and their families we know how much a centre like this is needed. We have already been approached by a group of teenagers with cancer to ask if they can arrange evening meetings - and that is before the doors have even opened.
Our aim is for the centre to be like a friend that families can turn to when they need a chat or specific help. We know the centre will be well used and we hope it will make a big difference in helping children and their families cope better with their illness."
A survey carried out among a group of children and their families found that
- 87% would seek advice
- 83% were keen to have access to information
- 70% would look for emotional support
- 64% were looking for benefits advice
- 53% wanted to meet others in the same situation
- 57% wanted to meet other young people with similar experiences.
Massage and stress management were the most popular of the activities mentioned at 68% and 62% respectively.
The centre comprises a large 'living room' with a large kitchen table for visitors to gather round, another spacious room for activities and rooms for one to one sessions, counselling or private discussions
It will be run by two co-ordinators, both of whom have nursing qualifications plus a part-time administrative support worker, a sessional Youth Worker and a group of volunteers. The Centre's trained staff will provide support by encouraging, motivating and teaching.
The Wooden Spoon Society has donated £50,000 towards the setting up costs, Edinburgh Evening News ran an appeal to raise £100,000 to help with the costs of the project. Ikea has provided much of the furnishing free of charge and the Big Lottery Fund has pledged to meet 50% of the annual running costs for three years.
The centre was officially opened at 2pm on Saturday May 20th during the Sick Kids Friends Foundation Street Fair by one of the young patients, Hannah Gray.
