Child Health Strategy

Dr Carole Easton, Chief Executive of CLIC Sargent, says: “CLIC Sargent has been calling for every child to have access to a community children’s nurse for some time. So we welcome the Government's strong commitment to community based children's services outlined in their Child Health Strategy launched today. We also welcome the move to a more integrated multi-disciplinary care package in a location chosen by the child and their family.  
 
“97% of children with cancer we have spoken to have told us that they want to go home during treatment. Today's strategy will enable them to spend more time at home, with their parents’ safe in the knowledge that they will have access to good quality community based care and support.”
 
CLIC Sargent’s report More Than My Illness, published today, recommends a new model of joined up service delivery for children with cancer (and other complex health needs) that spans the health, education and social care sectors. It will provide a toolkit for commissioners which will help them ensure that every child’s care and treatment is coordinated, and that they are able to safely leave hospital and spend more time at home during their treatment.
 
As well as providing local access to children’s community nurses, CLIC Sargent is recommending that every child and young person with cancer should have a key worker responsible for ensuring a consistent and coordinated service both in and out of hospital.   For most children, this will most likely be a hospital-based specialist children’s cancer nurse.  As the key worker they will be responsible for bringing together hospital doctors and nurses with ‘community based’ professionals such as the GP, the social worker, the teacher and the community children’s nurse. 
 
They would take a holistic view of the child’s clinical and non-clinical care needs and coordinate every element of the child’s care and support, ensuring that care needs are individually assessed and planned from the outset.
 
Dr Easton continues: “CLIC Sargent will continue to work with the Government to ensure that there is sufficient funding for this model; if children in this country aren’t to lose out on their childhood simply because they are ill.”

To arrange an interview please contact the CLIC Sargent Press Office on: 020 8752 2833/2812 or out of hours on: 07917 805489.