Macmillan's success at the Ulster Hospital

Karen Kelly, Paula Kealey, Liz Kennedy and Wilma Boyd Carson: Parkway Photography.

More than 350 people affected by cancer have been assisted by two innovative services that offer information, support and benefits advice at the Ulster Hospital, Dundonald.

Both services are funded by Macmillan Cancer Support and are delivered in partnership with the South Eastern Heath and Social Care Trust and the Citizens Advice Bureau.

The first services offers financial advise for people living with cancer. Over the last nine months advisers from the Macmillan CAB Welfare Advice Service have helped patients from across the South Eastern Heath and Social Care Trust area to claim more than half a million pounds in benefits and hardship grants.

The second service is about information and support. Anyone who has had any questions or concerns about cancer has also been able to drop into the new Macmillan Information and Support Centre, which is based at the hospital’s Breast and Endocrine Unit.

Now a special event has been held to officially launch and raise awareness of these services so they can reach even more people affected by cancer.

Macmillan senior development manager, Paula Kealey, said: 'The success of these two services in their first year has been phenomenal thanks to the hard work and dedication of all of the partners involved.'

'By raising awareness of these services now, we hope that we can make life better for even more people by assisting them with information, emotional support and benefits advice.'

'In our centenary year, Macmillan has been campaigning hard for everyone affected by cancer to have access to information, support and benefits advice. These services go a long way to helping achieve that goal.'

Stephen Kirk, clinical director for Cancer Services, South Eastern HSC Trust, added: 'As medical advances ensure more people are surviving cancer, there has become a clear awareness that the holistic quality of that survival must improve.'

'Macmillan has been instrumental in assisting the Trust as we seek to enhance the quality of life for patients beyond their medical and nursing care.'

'We are delighted that we have been able to enter into this partnership providing, support, information and benefit advice to our patients.'

The drop-in service offered by the Macmillan Information and Support Centre is delivered by an experienced Macmillan professional. Volunteers are also now being recruited to guide visitors to helpful information and offer a listening ear.

Visitors to the centre are welcome to take the time they need to talk about their experiences in a comfortable, relaxed environment. A comprehensive range of information on all aspects of cancer is also available.

Mum-of-two Amanda Lucas, 38, of Bangor, describes manager Karen Kelly at the Macmillan Cancer Information and Support Centre as a pillar of strength.

Amanda went to see Karen earlier this year after she attended the Ulster Hospital with her husband Nigel, 43, a retail manager who was diagnosed with bowel cancer in June 2009,

Karen was able to provide Amanda with a selection of information and support booklets that gave her guidance on a range of subjects, including how to talk to her two sons, aged nine and 14, about cancer.

Amanda, an administrator, said: 'The service has been very very supportive and it's been reassuring for me to be able to be able to pop in or phone up if I've any questions or concerns.'

'The fact that the information service is within the Ulster Hospital has also been very handy and we've found that has meant that, if Nigel needs support, Karen can put us in touch with the right person quickly.'

Operating in tandem with this service is the Macmillan CAB Welfare Advice Service which helps patients claim financial assistance such as statutory benefits and Macmillan Grants.

Since September, last year, the service has secured more than £514,000 in financial assistance for its clients.

A cancer diagnosis can have a huge financial impact but often patients do not know they are entitled to benefits or they struggle to fill in the complex forms.

Patients are likely to be too ill to work at a time when they face sharp rises in daily living expenses such as household fuel bills and the cost of travel to and from hospital.

As well as helping them claim benefits, advisers also help clients claim Macmillan Grants. These one off payments help patients meet the extra costs associated with a cancer diagnosis.

It is thanks to the Macmillan CAB Welfare Advice Service that Carolyn McKittrick-Jackson was able to give up a part time job to care for and spend quality time with her husband Don.

Don, 67, of Portaferry, was diagnosed with bowel cancer in September, last year, something that the Macmillan Information and Support Centre helped the couple come to terms with.

Adviser Liz Kennedy, of the Macmillan CAB Welfare Advice Service, was later able to secure Attendance Allowance and a Blue Badge for Don. A Macmillan grant of £350 was also put towards a tank of heating oil, something that was desperately needed as Don, due to his cancer treatment, was constantly feeling the cold.

Crucially, a successful application for Carers Allowance meant that Carolyn, 56, was able to give up her weekend and evening job as a slimming consultant to spend more time caring for Don.

Carolyn said: 'We can’t thank everyone involved in these Macmillan services enough for supporting us.'

'The assistance Don and I received helped us to go from being afraid to say the word cancer to being able to cope a lot better. It also means that instead of being at work all the time, I can really concentrate on caring for Don and we can spend quality time together. That means the world to us.'

To find out more about how the Macmillan Information and Support Centre service can help you, telephone 028 9055 3246 or email Macmillan.InformationandSupport@setrust.hscni.net|

Further information about the Macmillan CAB Welfare Advice Service is available by calling 028 9055 3254 or by emailing marshalls@citizensadvice.co.uk|