Rosebank Rotary Club launches Palliative Care Project
ROSEBANK - The Rosebank Rotary Club recently launched a pilot Palliative Care Project together with the Gauteng Department of Health at the Wanderers Club.
This project will run at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital under the hospital’s renal dialysis unit. The unit is the largest single unit of its kind in Africa, according to Dr. Mpho Ratshikana-Moloko of the hospital, and provides an acute haemodialysis service for patients.
About 17 trained volunteers will take part in this project. Training of the volunteers was provided by professionals from the UK, who were also present at the launch.
“The project aims to provide much-needed palliative care in Soweto. It is funded via a global grant from Rotary International. Home care will be provided to a large number of renal palliative care patients connected to Baragwanath Hospital. It will avoid them having to be treated at the hospital thereby making much-needed bed space available to other patients,” said Hugh Rix of the Rosebank Rotary Club.
Gloria Mokwatle, a coordinator of the project, said this is very special as it deals with the spiritual aspect of healing which is sometimes forgotten in the care. “We are going to deal with the holistic being of the person. Spiritual does not necessarily mean religious, in fact, it deals more with the emotions of a person,” said Mokwatle.
The care will involve the provision of specialised equipment to deliver pain medication, nursing supervision and spiritual support to patients.
“It is about helping patients who have life-threatening diseases, where there is no longer care for them. We look at helping them physically, socially, spiritually and emotionally as some of them are at the end of their life,” explained Moloko.
The first year of the project has been funded by the various rotary clubs around the world and thereafter the Gauteng Department of Health will take over the funding.
Palliative care is specialised medical care for people with serious illnesses. It focuses on providing relief from the symptoms and stress of a serious illness, with the goal to improve the quality of life for both the patient and his or her family.
Details: www.rotaryrosebank.org.za
