By Jenny-Anne Dexter | Project Leader
“I’m Monica, a Family Support Worker in the Durham team, I have worked for Rainbow Trust for 12 years! When I’m not at work I enjoy spending time with my 22 year old daughter and my little dog, Rolo. I also like days out with friends, shopping and maybe the odd glass of wine.”
Monica provides a lifeline for families in the North East of England who have a child with a life threatening or terminal illness. Monica, works with around 15 families at any one time, and her job can involve anything from going to hospital appointments, caring for siblings or helping out with everyday jobs like shopping and school runs.
"I've worked in childcare for health and social services, so when I saw an advert for the Rainbow Trust I was really interested. It just sounded so rewarding."
Her first placement was with a young boy from Consett, who was battling cancer and sadly died six months later. "It was totally new to me going to the hospital and learning about the different types of cancer and medications. I worked with this family throughout the boy's treatment and accompanied her to appointments. She was so nervous she would come out and ask: ‘What did that mean?' and I would help explain things to her."
Monica is one of six Rainbow Trust family support workers in the North East, who provide care for families throughout their child's treatment: "We ask what parts of life they are struggling with the most – it could be things like getting the kids to school or taking them out for nice visits. It's keeping families' lives as normal as possible and giving them a good quality of life. If the child gets better we work with them for around a year afterwards, if it's a bereaved family we work with them as long as they need us."
Despite watching families struggle, and the heartache of losing some children, Monica says, "I loved the job straight away. It's a real privilege to be welcomed into a family at such a time – every day is different and doing even small things can make a massive difference to them."
Rainbow Trust has nine teams of Family Support Workers around the country from Southampton to County Durham supporting the whole family. Last year we supported 2,000 families, with support from donors like you. Thank you!
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