Joan Marston and Melinda Müller with some of the children receiving care in Sunflower House.
Wear a hat to spark change.
When World Hospice and Palliative Care Day is observed on Friday (08/10), people from all over the world will don a hat in support of this important service.
According to Joan Marston of the Sunflower Children’s Hospice, the goal is to ensure that everyone in need of palliative care receives it.
“Everyone should have access to this service, regardless of how young or old they are and whether or not they live in a humanitarian crisis area,” she says.
“I initiated the HatsOn4CPC campaign in 2014 when I was the chief executive officer of the International Children’s Palliative Care Network (ICPCN). Now it is already celebrated in many countries around the world. We ask people to wear a hat on 8 October, take a selfie and post it on social media with the hashtag #HatsOn4CPC. Any donations to a local children’s hospice, national association or the ICPCN would be greatly appreciated.”
Because October enjoys a global focus on palliative care, Joan has been invited to talk at virtual conferences in ten different countries throughout October and November.
She is the ICPCN’s global ambassador for children’s palliative care and the vice-chairperson of the national organisation PatchSA.
“After conducting research with the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) a few years ago, we estimate that 21 million children around the world need palliative care. Around one million of these children live in South Africa.”
PatchSA promotes the six main children’s palliative care organisations in South Africa, of which the Sunflower Children’s Hospice is one.
“We need volunteers to come and play with the children at Sunflower House and keep them entertained,” Joan says.
According to Melinda Müller, manager at Sunflower House, the hospice will have a pop-up stand at the National Hospital on Friday where people can get more information on the work being done for children.
“People are also welcome to visit Sunflower House on Friday.”
