Annabelle is treated at Haven House
Haven House Children’s Hospice has launched its campaign to provide care over the festive period without the need to travel to the hospice.
Paola Noto, from the hospice, said: “Christmas is a particularly special time for us at Haven House and for our families.
“The best gift we can give our children is to be at home with their families and to enjoy precious moments together and we try and enable that.
The hospice aims to provide nurses, who will travel to families’ homes to provide care and support.
Haven House helps around 370 children each year.
One of those is three-year-old Annabelle.
Annabelle getting ready for Christmas
Annabelle was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy two days before Christmas in 2016.
It meant that she, along with her parents Michelle and Chris, spent much of her first Christmas in hospitals including Great Ormond Street.
Despite initially being reluctant to go to Haven House, Michelle has not looked back since the family’s first visit.
Michelle said: “It’s in beautiful surroundings, set in the forest. I instantly felt safe the minute I walked through the door.
“In terms of equipment, we can leave that in the car because they have all the equipment there.
“Even if we take our dog for a walk through the grounds, we feel safe because there are nurses on hand at any time.”
In February 2017, two months after being diagnosed, Annabelle was accepted onto a treatment programme using the drug Spinraza.
Her condition has since improved, but Spinraza is not a cure and Annabelle needs regular physiotherapy to help her.
Michelle said: “We constantly think ‘Is she going to be unwell again, are we going to be back in hospital?’
“But, with Haven House, we feel safe. It’s like a security blanket; we know they’re up the road, we know they are there to support us and having nurses that can come into our house means we are more likely to be at home at Christmas.”
81% of Haven House’s funding comes from the public. Without that support, it would not be able to help as many families as it does.
And, despite common misconceptions, Paola says the hospice provides more than just end-of-life care.
“We also support a range of supportive services to the children and families such as physiotherapy, music therapy, yoga, support for parents, support for siblings,” she said. “We allow nurses to go out into the community, into peoples homes and give them that respite care.”
Michelle added: “We wouldn’t have access to consistent physiotherapy without Haven House. Communities are overstretched and understaffed. It’s incredible the amount of good quality physiotherapy services that we do get from them.”
To find out how you can support the hospice this Christmas, visit havenhouse.org.uk/sendawish
Tags: Woodford, Redbridge, Barkingside, Woodford Green
