On February 23 England celebrates Helplines Awareness Day, which was launched last year by Helplines Partnership. Helplines are all about supporting people through their<\/p>\n
most difficult times and at Newlife our nurse-led helpline does that and more, having a huge impact on the families that call.<\/p>\n
Newlife\u2019s helpline service is provided by our Child and Family Support team and is the gateway to all the support Newlife can offer to both professionals and families who are searching for the right help for disabled children across the UK.<\/p>\n
Supporting families through difficult times, the team can help in a wide range of ways, from providing information about Newlife and our services, to checking the status of an application, as well as signposting to a range of other services to ensure a disabled child gets the right support at the right time.<\/p>\n
Newlife Consultant Nurse, Karen Dobson said: \u201cTo fully support the families who turn to Newlife, our teams believe in listening to the whole story and supporting wherever possible, so if we can\u2019t help you directly, then we may know of somewhere that can.<\/p>\n
\u201cProfessionals can come to us to discover how we can best help the families they are involved with, and if there is a family in urgent need of equipment to meet their child\u2019s medical needs, we can act quickly where necessary through our Emergency Equipment Loan service, if we have the required equipment available in our loan suite.<\/p>\n
\u201cFamilies can also turn to our Newlife Nurses for emotional care and support too. We are aware of how much extra stress it can place on a family when they are trying to sort through what statutory help they are entitled to, so they can also speak to us for more practical and emotional support.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor example, we know right now that many families are struggling with the high cost of living, which is still biting into incomes, leaving many families struggling more than ever before, particularly in the winter months with the high cost of gas and electricity. We can signpost you to any available help.<\/p>\n
\u201cOr, if a family has recently received a diagnosis for their child and are unsure what this will mean for their future and life as a family, we can offer support and a listening ear.\u201d<\/p>\n
Karen added: \u201cWe\u2019re quite simply here to help \u2013 and the Newlife team are committed to supporting disabled and terminally ill children and their families, whatever their needs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Staffordshire mum Heather Lowe is just one of the many calls called the helpline received. She said: \u201cWhen I called the Newlife Nurse Helpline about a specialist car seat and buggy for my daughter Elizabeth they were so supportive and non-judgmental, they were really good. I had tried other charities without success, but when I called the helpline they guided me through everything I needed to do for Elizabeth and even gave me a follow up call to make sure everything was ok, which was lovely. I can\u2019t thank them enough.\u201d<\/p>\n