University Launches New Degree in Child Hospice Care

Logo - Demelza: Hospice Care for Children [Clown] A new degree course in children’s palliative care is being launched by the University of Greenwich in partnership with Demelza Hospice Care.

The BSc (Hons) Professional Practice in Health and Social Care – Children’s Palliative Care will take advantage of the new training facilities at Demelza House headquarters in Sittingbourne, Kent, which were officially opened by Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes.

The degree has been developed by the University of Greenwich School of Health & Social Care based at Avery Hill, Eltham. Demelza has written the specialist children’s palliative care courses.

Jayne Beeby, university Senior Lecturer in Health Development, said: “There has been a serious shortage of training opportunities and continuing professional development education in the field of respite care.

‘We are delighted to be working with Demelza to ensure a high standard of professional education for practitioners working with children and their families.”

Rachel Black, Demelza Lecturer-Practitioner said: “This degree programme allows practitioners dedicated to children’s palliative care to focus their studies on their area of work.

“We are providing an educational framework which develops knowledge and skills plus a recognised qualification which is transferable between institutions.

“This year we have had students travelling from Oxford, London, Essex and Dorset to study with us, which emphasises the lack of such co-ordinated study elsewhere in the UK.

“One of the most rewarding aspects of the training is the use of interviews with children and families. Through these, students gain new perspectives on their work while children and families have an opportunity to influence the training of palliative care professionals.”

Demelza Hospice Care is a charity which offers a wide range of services including short breaks, symptom control and end of life care for children and families facing life-limiting or life-threatening disease, as well as bereavement support.

The charity is currently planning to develop a six-bed residential centre at Wensley Close, Eltham, on land owned by the Greenwich Teaching Primary Care Trust.

The new hospice will offer residential short breaks for children with accommodation available for families wishing to stay with their child; end of life care; hospice-at home services with trained nurses and carers; day care provisions; and bereavement services and practical advice to immediate and wider family members.

The hospice will mainly serve the boroughs of Greenwich, Lewisham, Bromley, Lambeth and Southwark. It is estimated that up to 780 of the 460,000 children in the area are affected by life-limiting and life-threatening conditions. There is currently no local residential children’s hospice to serve these children and their families.

The new residential hospice will complement the recently launched Demelza hospice-at-home service provided by paediatric nurses based at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Greenwich.

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For further information contact:
Nick Davison
Public Relations Unit
University of Greenwich

Tel: 020 8331 8092
Email: n.a.p.davison@gre.ac.uk