Chronic and disabling disease can prolong the period of internment and lead to overloading of family and hospital resources.
The continuity of the provision of pediatric health care at home can prevent unnecessary hospitalizations and prevent, at the origin, the psychosocial degradation of the child and the family.
Based on a multidisciplinary approach, the pediatric home care teams of the Foundation of Gil, in partnership with hospitals, increase comfort levels, control symptoms and manage the necessary therapies in a more protected environment adapted to the sick child.
The pediatric home care of Fundação do Gil has been operating since 2006 in partnership with the following partner public hospitals:
Santa Maria Hospital (Lisbon)
Dona Estefânia Hospital (Lisbon)
Fernando da Fonseca Hospital (Lisbon)
Hospital of S. João (Porto)
Northern Children’s Center – CMIN (Porto)
At the end of 2017, the first Integrated Pediatric Care Units (CPI) started operating, including pediatric palliative care.
(CPP), in partnership with:
Hospital of S. João (Porto)
Northern Children’s Center – CMIN (Porto)
In 2019 we expanded the project in pediatric palliative care, also to the partner hospitals in Lisbon:
Santa Maria Hospital (Lisbon)
Dona Estefânia Hospital (Lisbon)
Fernando da Fonseca Hospital (Lisbon)
In 2020 we extended support to the Garcia de Orta Hospital (South of the Tagus).
Through this project, it has been possible to improve the child’s general health status, foster the social training of the family and allow for a better emotional balance of the entire household, namely:
· Stabilization of the disease;
· Reduction in the number of hospitalizations;
· Improvement of the child’s physical well-being.
· Reinforcement of the training of the main caregiver and the autonomy of the family;
· Prevention of situations of psychosocial degradation and social exclusion;
· Promotion of returning to working life;
· feasibility of returning to school.
· Increased self-esteem of the caregiver and the family;
· Improvement of parental relationships and family dynamics;
· Increased feeling of support through technical support and contact with groups of parents.
Without the pediatric home care of the foundation of Gil, many children would be forced to remain hospitalized, for indefinite periods, until the family was able to guarantee their clinical, social and emotional monitoring.
· Reduction of 45% in the frequency of readmissions;
· Increased emotional well-being of the child by 62%;
· Increased physical health of children by 48%;
· Increased clinical autonomy of families by 46%;
· Increase in the degree of the feeling of clinical support of families by 42%.
Source: SROI Assessment
The project has shown high efficiency in improving the child’s comfort and quality of life and in the optimization of family and hospital resources.
The benefits generated with the child, the family and the hospital environment have been successively recognized by partner entities, by entities linked to the health sector and by international organizations.
