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Our statement of purpose

Zoe’s Place Trust offers a highly professional care service for babies aged 0 to 5 years with life threatening or life limiting illness. We are pleased to offer babies and their families a short break service and when appropriate, for palliative and end of life care. Zoe’s Place aims to provide babies, young children and their families with a secure, relaxed and homely environment in which their care, well being and comfort are of prime importance. The hospices provide a care which reflects the belief that every child is unique and that the child and his/ her family are entitled to personal and professional quality care, regardless of race, creed, religion, sex or colour. Recognising that recovery is sometimes unobtainable, care and support is offered to ensure the rights of the child to a dignified and peaceful death with their family around them.

The hospices promote an environment that fosters good communication between members of staff, and staff and parents, and an understanding of the psychological needs of all involved in the care of children.

Staff will strive to preserve and maintain the dignity, individuality and privacy of all babies/ young children and their families within a warm and caring atmosphere and in so doing, will be sensitive to the family’s ever-changing needs. Such needs may be medical/ therapeutic (for physical and mental welfare), cultural, psychological, spiritual, emotional and social, and families are encouraged to participate in the development of their individualised care plans.

During the infants’ stay at Zoe’s Place, they will be kept safe and protected at all times. Local Safeguarding Board Child Protection Guidelines will be adopted and followed. Prospective staff will be subject to enhanced police checks through the Criminal Records Bureau before commencing their employment (Regulation 11, Outcome 7). All care staff within the Trust will be appropriately qualified to deliver the highest standards of care. A continuous staff training programme is implemented to ensure that these standards are maintained in line with the latest developments in care practices as may be laid down in appropriate legislation, regulations and the Care Quality Commission Essential Standards of Quality and Safety.

There are several aims and objectives of Zoe’s Place Trust:

  •  Psychosocial support for the whole family

Zoe’s Place aims to work with families in direct response to their expressed needs in palliative care and bereavement support. We are committed to a family-led service where children and families are viewed as partners in the care offered.

  •  Short breaks, emergency and end of life care

Zoe’s Place aims to give best palliative care through access to short breaks, emergency and end of life care. Services are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The hospices strive to meet the holistic needs of each child and their family within a homely environment. Care is provided by registered and experienced children’s nurses and care staff supported by other health professionals and members of the multi disciplinary team. The care team is committed to a family led service where children and their families are viewed as partners in the service offered. This is achieved through:

  • Discussing decisions about care and palliative treatment (and resuscitation) with the family/ main carers and with the child, if appropriate, in liaison with other health professionals involved in their care
  •  Assessing and recording the dependency needs and complex care and nursing needs of all the children in consultation with the family, child (if appropriate) and other main carers.
  •  Completing a detailed individualized care plan with the family which is reviewed/ updated on each visit to the hospice, ensuring that all children are offered age-appropriate involvement in all decisions affecting them.
  •  Working closely with the community team/ key worker to ensure excellent communication.
  •  Ensuring that families understand the booking procedure and that this procedure is accessible, fair and equitable to service users.
  •  Recruiting and retaining sufficient qualified and experienced staff to match bed occupancy levels, ensuring safe practice and individualized client/family care.
  •  Offering support to the child and their family as they work through feelings about the approaching death.
  •  Caring for a child’s body after they have died and supporting families in the use of the ‘Cooled Room’, should they decide to use this facility.
  •  Ensuring that the cultural and religious needs of families are provided for during their stay at the hospice, and that the dignity of each child and family is respected and their views listened to.
  •  Ensuring that a varied programme of play and activities for all babies and children is provided, including siblings staying at Zoe’s Place, and encouraging them to maintain an interest in the world around them.
  •  Providing appropriate learning opportunities for school age children whilst staying at Zoe’s Place, liaising with the child’s school.
  •  Using art, music, complementary therapies to deliver a holisitic approach to care for babies/children.
  •  Assessing all children who are independently mobile to ensure their individual risk, independence and dignity are respected at all times whilst ensuring that this does not pose unacceptable risk to the individual or to others.
  • Undertaking annual appraisals with all staff to identify training needs. Organising training and the updating of knowledge and skills in response to the child’s assessed and individual needs and to meet current legislation.
  •  Ensure appropriate induction of new staff.
  •  Encouraging Zoe’s Place commitment to equal opportunities in terms of the care team philosophy and practice.
  •  Consultation with children and their families

Zoe’s Place is ‘client’ led. We are sensitive to the changing needs of families and support them to adjust throughout various changes and challenges they inevitably have to face. People are always asked for their consent to the care and treatment of their baby/child and understand how to change decisions about things that they have previously agreed. Trained members of staff are always available for the parents/carers to talk to and discuss any concerns (Regulation 18, Outcome 2).

  •  Eligibility Criteria

Zoe’s Place Trust provides respite and palliative care services to babies and young children who have a life limiting or life threatening condition, from birth and up to the age of 5 years. These services will be provided to children who meet our criteria. Hospice care will continue to be provided until they reach their 6th birthday. There is no fixed catchment area and we welcome babies/young children and their families from all over the country.

  •  Referrals

Referrals can be made, by verbally, via e mail or in writing, to the Head of Care or Deputy Head of Care, by parents/guardians, GPs, community nurses, consultants or any health professional involved in a child’s care. A referral form is available. Once contact has been made, a visit can be arranged for the family, to see if the facilities and services offered at Zoe’s Place best meet the requirements of the infant and family. With agreement from the parents, a letter will be sent to the child’s consultant to gain more information about the child’s clinical needs and to ensure that they meet our admission criteria. A pre admission assessment will then be arranged so that care plans can be written. We endeavor to ensure that children can gain access to our services within 2 to 6 weeks from the date of referral. End of Life Care and symptom control will be provided as soon as it is needed.

  • Health and safety

It is our policy to promote the highest standards of Health and Safety and Infection Control to prevent our employees, service users and visitors suffering accidents and ill health. Zoe’s Place Trust will comply fully with the terms and requirements of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, local NHS Infection Control standards and all other relevant statutory provisions. Health and Safety advisors are available to give advice on these. The management and staff will monitor the implementation and operation of these policies. A full fire risk assessment has been carried out (Regulation 12, Outcome 8; Regulation 15, Outcome 10).

  •  Care services and facilities

These include short breaks, emergency care and terminal care as well as psychosocial support and pre and post bereavement support. Zoe’s Place will work in partnership with the community team and complex care teams to ensure that consistent care is given to the babies and children who access care in the community and in the hospice. Local policies relating to clinical care will be adopted for use in Zoe’s Place and much of the mandatory training, and staff clinical supervision, will be delivered by the community team or by local agencies (Regulation 24, Outcome 6).

Facilities will include physiotherapy, nursing care, medical care, pharmacy, voluntary help (in fundraising and administration), music therapy, sibling support, support groups, bereavement care, social activities, counseling, education/training, housekeeping, multi sensory rooms, complementary therapies and hydrotherapy. These facilities will be provided by a range of staff, some employed and some voluntary, all of whom will have been appropriately checked to ensure their suitability for working with young children and families.

Parents/carers are expected to bring their child’s own equipment with them to Zoe’s Place. Management will ensure that all staff are competent in its use and maintenance. Spare medical equipment is available
at the hospice (Regulation 16, Outcome 11).

There is a comprehensive Medicine Management policy to ensure that medicines are administrated and stored safely. Information is available in relation to
medicines and advice, audit and stock control is monitored by external and local pharmacy services (Regulation 13, Outcome 9).

All babies and children will have their nutritional needs met by being offered appropriate, nutritional and balanced diet to meet their different needs (Regulation 14, Outcome 5).

  •  Accommodation

There will be open access for persons with parental responsibility, relatives or other persons approved by persons with parental responsibility as defined by the Children’s Act 1989. Family accommodation is offered.

  •  Confidentiality and data protection

All care and clinical records are kept in a locked filing cabinet in a locked room. Staff are trained in completing records in accordance with the NMC Guidelines for Record Keeping. There is a Confidentiality Policy and staff sign a Confidentiality Contract on employment at Zoe’s Place Trust (Regulation 20, Outcome 21).

  •  Dealing with complaints and incidents

The aim of the management and staff at Zoe’s Place Trust is to deal with and resolve complaints sensitively, quickly and fairly. Zoe’s Place has a Complaints and Incidents Policy and all service users are made aware of this should they need to make a formal complaint or report an incident. Management and staff will apply its Confidentiality Policy to every person connected to a complaint being dealt with. All complaints, incidents and the outcomes of these are recorded and discussed at the Clinical Governance meetings (Regulation 19, Outcome 17).

For the Complaints Procedure click here.

  •  Monitoring and quality

Within the hospice there are various systems which ensure that close monitoring is maintained on all the hospice’s services and procedures (Regulation 10, Outcome 16). Clinical Governance underpins our practice and ensures that we provide the best quality care. An important part of our quality programme is to involve the parents and relatives. We will regularly ask for comments on the hospice, the staff and the services we provide. No research is carried out at Zoe’s Place.

  •  Respecting the privacy and dignity of children and their families

Care will be provided for up to 6 infants. All staff are trained in promoting privacy and dignity at all times including time spent in the hospice after death. We ensure that our hospices protect the child’s right to privacy and dignity. The choice and autonomy of individuals are considered integral in the services provided (Regulation 17, Outcome 1).

  •  Staffing

There is a Nurse Manager,  Deputy Nurse Manager and a team of children’s nurses, nursery nurses and carers in each location. We have a Registered Nurse (Child or LD) with the skills and competence to meet the needs of the child who will be on duty at all times. The mix and experience of the care team will ensure that there is a holistic approach to the care and development of the babies and children. The children will receive one to one care during the day and their needs will be assessed regularly to ensure that additional staff can be allocated according to the identified needs. Zoe’s Place expect its entire staff, at all levels, to receive effective supervision in accordance with anti-discriminatory practices. New staff will follow the induction programme with their mentor (a trained nurse), who will supervise their learning and professional development by providing feedback on their practices, including recognition of good work. The supervisor has a particular responsibility for building on good practice and ensuring that professional relationships and sound judgement in the work place are maintained (Regulation 22, Outcome 13; Regulation 23, Outcome 14; Regulation 21, Outcome 12).