In Zimbabwe 1 in 60 people are in need of palliative care (WHO). Research published in the Journal of Pain & Symptom management (Vol. 3 # 2 Feb 17) estimates the need for Children's Palliative Care in Zimbabwe to be the highest in the world at 120 per 10, 000. The challenges associated with living with life threatening conditions such as cancer, HIV, MDR TB, cancer and diabetes are made worse by a fragile and under-funded health system, loss to follow up, lack of transportation to access care and the rise in diseases.
2017-2018 Impact
From 1 July 2017-30 June 2018 we provided support to 10 339 patients (of which 281 were children) & their family member through 10 339 contact sessions comprising of:
Clinical Services
| Service |
Reach |
| Home visits |
1 254
|
| Hospital & clinic visits |
2 072
|
| Office consultations |
655
|
| Telephone sessions |
860 |
During the same period we provided 621 adult clients with bereavement and counselling services as detailed in the table below.
Bereavement & Counselling Services
| Service |
Reach |
| Grief & bereavement counselling |
329
|
| Trauma cases |
29 |
| Patient support |
263 |
Further to the above we supported a total of 395 bereaved children as follows:-
Children
| Service |
Reach |
| Bereaved Children's Groups |
267
|
| De-Brief Sessions |
48 |
| Dare to Dream Programme |
80 |
Vision
A Zimbabwe where people access quality palliative and bereavement care to reduce suffering and pain and improve the quality of their lives.
- Pain management
- Symptoms treatment
- Counselling services
- Bereavement therapy
- Caregiving training
Mission
Island Hospice and Healthcare, being a centre of excellence, provides quality palliative care services and support to those with life threatening illnesses and the bereaved through comprehensive direct care, capacity development, partnerships, research and advocacy.