Did you know the vast majority of referrals Project 4031 receives are from local social workers and child life specialists? We want to take time to celebrate these amazing professionals that we have the honor of working with.
The role of a social worker is to advocate for each patient’s needs and wishes and to address the emotional aspects of their illnesses. Social workers also assist families identify local services and resources available to provide additional support. Social workers on hospice teams work with families dealing with death while also dealing with the difficulties of daily life. They take the time to assess and learn more about all the needs that families struggle with such as going to work while caring for a terminally ill loved one, medical bills, childcare, paying rent or a mortgage, keeping the lights on and food on the table, etc. Social workers develop a level of trust and rapport with families while working hand-in-hand them to find creative solutions to their struggles.
Child life specialists play an integral part in pediatric a patient’s health and well-being within the hospital or hospice setting. They work closely with children and their families to counsel them, serve as emotional support, and help them develop coping strategies. They work to explain medical jargon and prepare children for procedures or the next phases of their illness. The main goal of a child life specialist is to help decrease stress or anxiety by helping patients understand what is happening. While their focus mostly centers on the needs of the pediatric patient, child life specialists also pay attention to their siblings and family to ensure their emotional and physical needs are being met.
A common theme at Project 4031 is family and support for entire families. In our society, there are many misconceptions surrounding social workers and child life specialists within hospice care. The focus of these hospice care roles is not only to support the patient; it’s also to support their family. During discussions about available hospice services, patients are often surprised when their family members reveal that they need help too. Many families express wishing they had received hospice care for their entire family sooner.
One of the most impactful conversations we’ve had with a hospice social worker was years ago, but the conversation stuck with us. She revealed why working with Project 4031 made her job easier. She shared about her day-to-day case load, responsibilities, time constraints, and more. She explained how she only has a finite amount of time to assess a case situation and then must move on to her next scheduled patient visit. It pained her to hear about families struggling. She knew there was nothing in her power that she could do to save a patient at end of life or give a family more time with their loved one. However, there was a different way she could help. She could give families tangible support by referring them to Project 4031’s resources if they needed financial assistance or help fulling a patient’s last wishes.
We see the constant dedication and positive impact social workers and child life specialists make on their patients’ and families’ lives each and every day. Their work is incredibly important, and we are thankful for the opportunity to partner with them to better serve their patients in need.
“The families sometimes have crisis where a caregiver has to leave work, come home and provide care and it puts the family in a real financial dilemma. That can involve needing the electricity to stay on or having groceries, just meeting basic needs are critical. Project 4031 has been a huge blessing and resource for us and our patients because we run into this every day. I’m grateful for the experience of working with Project 4031 because without the connection and the relationship we would have a lot of families that were suffering.”
Ms. Lopez, Hospice Social Worker
“For the populations I work with there is pretty limited support for some of the infants as well as the older children. Or they have already received some sort of support and now they can’t receive it again. They’ve had an illness for fifteen years, went on a wish when they were four years old, but now they deserve to do something different because they are older and have different needs.”
Mrs. Cox, Hospice Child Life Specialist
To partner with Project 4031 and refer your patients to our resources, please visit Project4031.org or call our office at 817.653.8976.
Make a Difference
You can make a difference through Project 4031’s monthly giving, The Sparrow Project. By donating on a monthly basis, you can strengthen someone’s end-of-life story and remove the challenges faced by end-of-life.
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708 May Street, Fort Worth, Texas, 76104
info[at]project4031.org
Phone: (817) 653-8976
Fax: (817) 841-8250
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