Family Support
the problem:
When a family member is ill, the entire family is impacted. This is especially true when the family member in question is a child. It is my hope and goal to work with the pediatric units of hospitals to create a program that will help the families as well as their young patients. This could include recruiting volunteers to help with transportation and preparing meals to working with outside organizations to help with childcare for the other children in the family. It is important when fighting an illness to have a strong community backing you, and if I can help to relive the stress of one family through small but meaningful ways then I will consider my project a success.
vital stats:
people impacted:
10people involved:
1why it's important:
I have been an ill child and I saw the support that my parents needed in order to properly care for me and my four siblings. Without the support of grandparents and aunts and uncles my parents would not have been able to give all of their children the best they were able to give. Often times families do not have the local support that my own parents were fortunate enough to have, and by creating that local support structure I believe that I could make a difference for a family
the plan of action:
my plan of action would include setting up a trial program to see what will work and what won't. I would also like to interview the parents and children who are hospital bound to see what would make their lives easier. Some sick children are still attending school and may need tutoring, some parents might like a few meals prepared for them, while others might just like someone to get them a cup of coffee. Ideally I would put together a dedicated core of volunteers and create a basic set of simple solutions. Then, this basic list would be tailored to fit each family.
how you can get involved:
Others can help by donating their time and skills to making this work. Perhaps we start the program in one hospital and spread the program to others.
