Chronic illnesses may prolong the period of time at the hospital, which brings on an emotional and financial overload on the family and hospital resources.
The ongoing need for pediatric domestic health care may avoid unnecessary hospital admissions and prevent, at the origin, the psychological degradation of the child and their family.
Focused on a multidisciplinary approach, the domestic pediatric care teams, in partnership with hospitals, raise the comfort levels, control symptoms and administer the necessary therapies and treatments in a more protected and personalised environment for the child in need.
The domestic pediatric care at “Fundação do Gil” has been working since 2006 in partnership with the national public hospitals:
Hospital Dona Estefânia (Lisboa)
Hospital Fernando da Fonseca (Lisboa)
Hospital de Santa Maria (Lisboa)
Hospital de S. João (Porto)
Centro Materno Infantil do Norte – CMIN
At the end of 2017 the first units of integrated domestic pediatric care, were put in place, which included Cuidados Paliativos Pediátricos, in partnership with:
Hospital de S. João (Porto)
Centro Materno Infantil do Norte – CMIN
In 2019, we extended the project to Pediatric Palliative Care to partner hospitals in Lisbon:
Hospital de Santa Maria (Lisboa)
Hospital Dona Estefânia (Lisboa)
Hospital Fernando da Fonseca (Lisboa)
In 2020, we extended our support to Hospital Garcia de Orta (South of Tejo).
Through this project, we have been able to improve the general state of the children’s health, fermenting the social capacity of the family and allow a better emotional balance and all that is associated with it, namingly:
· Stabilization of the illnesses;
· Reduction in the number of hospital admissions;
· Improvement of the physical well-being of the child.
· Empowerment of the primary caregiver and family empowerment;
· Prevention of psychosocial degradation and social exclusion;
· Advertisement of reintegration to an active life;
· Feasibility of returning to school.
· Increase in the self-esteem of the caregiver and the family;
· Improvement of the parental relationships and family dynamics;
· Increase in the feeling of support through technical accompaniment and contact with groups of parents.
Without the domestic pediatric care at “Fundação do Gil”many children would have been forced to remain hospitalized, for undefined periods of time, until the time where the family was capable to guarantee their clinical, social and emotional progress.
· 45% reduction in the frequency of re-hospitalizations;
· 62% increase in the emotional well-being of children;
· 48% increase in the children’s physical health;
· 46% increase in family’s clinical autonomy;
· 42% increase in the level.
Source: Avaliation SROI
The project has given proof of being highly efficient in improving child’s comfort and quality of life as well as optimizing family and hospital resources.
The benefits generated for the child, the family and the hospital environment have been recognized successively by partners, health sector entities and international organizations.
Our partners
Affectionately called “Gil’s House”, it is intended for the reception of children who are at social and/or clinical risk and cannot be with their families.
Made up of a team of specialized professionals, the house works mainly three key aspects in the childhood and youth: Health, education and psychosocial accompaniment.
Casa do Gil is intended for children, between 0 and 12 years old, with a Promotion and Protection Process, who are therefore unable to return to their families, given the social and/or clinical risk. It has a capacity for 16 children, accommodating six babies up to 2 years old, in a nursery, and ten children, from 2 years old, in six double rooms.
“Casa do Gil” is open 24 hours per day and 365 days per year.
The current population that “Casa do Gil” welcomes are in need of special attention, given the complexity of their family, social and emotional problems, requiring an intervention that repairs the trauma and encourages the establishment of positive bonding relationships, as well as in the development of the autonomy and participation of all the intervenient: professionals, children and their respective families.
Based on the Convention for the “Child rights”, the “Casa do Gil” team, made of specialized professionals, is committed to:
a) Promoting the realization of each child’s life project, in the shortest possible time, guaranteeing their well-being and safety;
b) Provide children with the satisfaction of all their basic needs in living conditions as close as possible to those of a family structure and the satisfaction of specific needs arising from residential care, through monitoring and surveillance at a social, clinical level and educational;
c) Provide the means to promote the personal development of each child.
In this sense, a working logic was created, centred on a bioecological model, starting the child’s process based on six intervention areas: Justice, Family, Physical Health/Mental Health, Education/Training, Daily Life and Community. With a view to greater individualised monitoring, essential for the establishment of protective relationships, each child has a reference pair, consisting of a Technician and an Educator, having as a premise the response to their needs, guaranteeing the fulfilment of their life project, in real-time as well as the presence of proximity figures, in most of their days.
According to the world health organization, one in every 5 children present evidence of mental health issues. This is a statistic that is likely to increase. Of these children almost half suffer from a psychiatric disorder that without the adequate help can progress into serious issues in their adult life.
The “Fundação do Gil” is building a space dedicated to child development. It will be a space that is open to the whole community, offering appointments in the areas of child development and mental health.
A group of specialized therapists will follow the children and families that present difficulties in the education and social integration plan, arising from physical, emotional and behavioral problems.
The technical team will allow a specialized and integrated intervention in the family, social, psychosocial and therapeutic plan.
Therapies available:
· Psychology clinic
· Psychosocial
· Speech therapy
· Special education
· Occupational therapy
· Amongst others