During COVID-19 Harlington Hospice has had to adapt all of its services including the Child and Adolescent Bereavement Service (CABS).
Art Therapists, Paula and Ellie, changed to working remotely, providing weekly pre and post bereavement sessions with telephone support to parents of very young children and weekly video sessions with young people.
Having the right equipment was essential, such as reliable technology for communication and remote working. We also sent out Art Therapy bags with individual art supplies for children.
CABS Manager, Paula Boyle said: “It has been a challenge to adapt to the changes brought on by COVID-19 – but we have been creative in our approach, ensuring that the service has kept running to provide support. We are seeing more referrals to the service, in order to continue to provide excellence in service we are hoping to be able to expand the team and to meet the increased needs in the community.
“We believe that unresolved grief should not inhibit children from achieving the best they can in life. We aim help the child, their family and other professionals working in their care understand the impact of grief and how they can best support them moving forward in their lives.”
