Lunch Club with… Caroline Hill

Time: 12:00 – 13:30
Members: £15 + vat, Non-members: £20 + vat

Come and join us for another exciting monthly lunch club with inspirational people! Enjoy a glass of wine on arrival and fabulous fork buffet lunch prepared by Hotel du Vin’s amazing chef.

About Caroline Hill Headway Acute Trauma Support (HATS) Nurse (West Midlands):

The funds raised from the BLS adoption will support the crucial role of the West Midlands HATS nurse, Caroline Hill. Caroline is based at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham and provides crucial emotional and practical support, giving invaluable advice to families and carers in the early stages following brain injury.

Following a brain injury, families can spend many days at the bedside of their loved ones in critical care or high dependency units. This can be a highly uncertain and distressing time for families, who may have no existing understanding of brain injury or the implications for the future.

On average, 102 individuals per month were supported by our HATS service at Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QE) in 2017. Caroline supports families who arrive at the Major Trauma Centre within the QE, where our HATS project has had a presence for six years.

Caroline helps in a number of ways;

·       A ‘listening ear’ and source of support and information

·       Acting as a link between other services, e.g. hospital staff, community support

·       Providing information on how to apply for benefits and/or compensation claims

·       Visiting families in the hospital, or elsewhere if required

·       Directing families to the Headway Emergency Fund for financial support

·       Continuing support for as long as required, putting families in touch with other organisations that may be of help

·       Accompanying families to attend meetings with hospital staff if requested; to help explain medical jargon and discuss the information provided at the meeting

·       Assisting in other identified areas wherever possible

Please note that this lunch club will be taking place during Action for Brain Injury Week on 14 – 20 May.