COVID-19: Our Response

With highly infectious nature of COVID-19, families are struggling to say goodbye to their loved ones in hospital. From funerals in isolation to grieving alone, this is how bereavement has changed in COVID-19 pandemic. Because of social distancing measures many children/youths have become disconnected from friendships and social interactions resulting in loneliness, Isolation and at risk of mental decline. Project exist to relieve isolation of children/youths from low income families, experiencing bereavement due to COVID-19 by providing therapies to aid their mental wellbeing.

Project AIMS to:

1. Recruit deploy and train 10 virtual peer volunteers, who will provide early support, information, and signposting to beneficiaries.
2. Provide virtual bereavement and mental health counselling
3. Involve children and young people in shaping-delivery of bereavement service.
4. Build resilience to understand effects of change, offer support, advice and age appropriate information
5. Empower the community to support youths and their families who are going through bereavement

Over 24 weeks we plan to host:

1. Children/young people virtual group resilience and communication skills training
2. Create website, social-media platforms as mediums to reach youths and receive project feedback.
3. Telephone and online helpline-chat including bereavement counselling
4. Mental-health virtual discussion boards, games and group-chats
5. Promoting and providing training of childhood-bereavement counsellors

This project will address gaps in bereavement-care of families by taking preventative approach ensuring bereaved children/young people will have support they need at time they need it to stay active and engaged with their communities by:

1. Raising awareness of how bereavement affects children/young people mental and physical health.
2. Improving access to support for bereaved families.
3. Improving self-help and peer-support to reduce loneliness and social-isolation
4. Promoting safeguarding to support long-term mental and physical health
5. Develop new model of working with refugees/asylum-seekers bereaved children/young people with no opportunities of going back to their homelands.

 Project will be promoted through website/social media-inform current and future research on virtual therapeutics of bereavement and mental health.

Through telephone networks, website and social media these children, young people and their families will be brought together with persons going through similar issues of Bereavement, creating stronger, healthier relationships. As they talk about their feelings sharing memories of the deceased person will bring mental relief, contentment and healing. Talking with friends and family can be one of the most helpful ways to cope after someone close dies. Having a local virtual befriender will avoid families feeling isolated/lonely thereby aid community cohesion. To support at the earliest stage and prevent mental decline, Befrienders will advise those experiencing severe symptoms or flashbacks; to contact Cruse or their GP for further advice and support. This will help bring people together and build stronger relationships in and across communities. Inter-agency interventions will keep children and teenagers occupied through virtual games, drones and online games while maintaining contact with other young befrienders to help deal with their emotions/fears at an early stage.