Hospital can often be the first place that many parents and children will hear the term palliative care. Below an overview is provided of the role of hospitals in a palliative care setting
Liz O’Donoghue – Clinical Nurse Specialist Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital
Claire Quinn, Head of Clinical Education and Research, LauraLynn Children’s Hospice/Lecturer NUI Galway – Lecturer University of Galway
Hilary Noonan, Children’s Outreach Nurse – HSE
The diagnosis of the life-limiting illness and the prospect of losing a child are unthinkable for any parent. You may be in your local hospital or in a larger city Hospital when you are told that your child or adolescent has a condition requiring palliative care and may not live for a long time.
The term palliative, life limiting or hospice or will be confusing for you and wherever you are, you will never forget the time you heard the words or the impact that they created within your family.
But you are not alone.
Whether you are in a regional or a city hospital there will be someone who can help and explain what these terms mean and what the future holds.
In many paediatric units across the Island you will probably meet with a Clinical Nurse Specialist in palliative care, a Clinical Nurse Coordinator (RoI) or a Macmillan Nurse (NI) who works alongside the child’s paediatric, medical and multi-disciplinary team including doctors, nurses, dietitians, physiotherapists, social workers, chaplains, play specialist, music therapist and psychologist, where available. You can avail of this new team and express your concerns, fears, hopes and expectations. In return, they can offer you guidance to care for your child, help you to learn new skills and provide the necessary resources to aid you at this difficult time. Discussions with families about possible symptoms and illness progression are helpful in making decisions including where parents would ultimately like to care for their child. Wherever you choose to care for your child, the team can arrange the necessary care for your child and your family and everyone focus will be on maximizing the child’s quality of life.
In reality, families very often move between care settings such as home, hospital and hospice. Regular communication between families and healthcare professionals is vital. When or if families wish to bring their child home from hospital, discharge planning is undertaken by the hospital team in conjunction with your child’s Clinical Nurse Coordinator (RoI) or palliative care nurse and this includes referral to your GP, Public Health Nurses (RoI), Community Children’s Nurses (NI), District Nurses (NI) and voluntary agencies. Arrangements can be made with established community adult palliative homecare services or paediatric ‘hospice at home’ services to provide specialist palliative care at home. The team is there to help families navigate difficult choices and finds a way forward together. Irrespective of your child’s needs, at no point should any parent or guardian feel alone or isolated.
Below you will find an overview and the contact details for the two major children’s hospitals in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) is leading on the clinical and operational transformation of acute paediatric healthcare and consists of hospitals at Crumlin, Temple Street and Tallaght as well as an Urgent Care Centre at Connolly hospital in Blanchardstown.
CHI Crumlin is Ireland’s largest acute paediatric teaching hospital. It is responsible nationally for the provision of the majority of quarternary and tertiary healthcare services for children. It provides secondary care for the local catchment area.
To learn more about the services they provide, see here: https://www.childrenshealthireland.ie/your-hospital-visit/our-locations/chi-at-crumlin/
The Children’s Hospital on the Royal Hospitals site is the only hospital in Northern Ireland dedicated specifically to the care of children. It provides general hospital care for children living in Belfast and provides most of the paediatric regional specialities for
You can learn more about the services available here: https://belfasttrust.hscni.net/hospitals/childrens/
Martina works across LauraLynn Children’s Hospice and Children’s Health Ireland at Crumlin, providing joined-up palliative care in hospital, hospice, and at home. She supports families through every step, helping manage symptoms, coordinate care, and ensure the best quality of life for each child. Her role bridges services, offering familiar, compassionate support wherever it’s needed.
Watch the video below to learn more about Martina at LauraLynn and Children’s Health Ireland.
Link to LauraLynn Children’s Hospice: https://www.lauralynn.ie/
Link to Children’s Health Ireland: https://www.childrenshealthireland.ie/
