The Midlands children’s outreach nursing service based at the Midland Regional Hospital, Mullingar will benefit from the huge success of National Pyjama Day.
National Pyjama Day is a major fundraiser organised by Early Childhood Ireland (ECI ), and it has raised almost €1 million (over €919,961 ) for the Irish Hospice Foundation’s (IHF ) Hospice Home Care for Children programme over the past four years.
The service, which is operated in partnership with the Health Service Executive, funds eight children’s outreach nurses throughout Ireland who provide support to families caring for their seriously ill child at home. It also funds Ireland’s first consultant paediatrician with a special interest in paediatric palliative care in Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin.
Five of the eight outreach nurses are funded by the IHF including Deirdre Murphy who is based at the Midland Regional Hospital, Mullingar and covers the Midlands region. Deirdre cares for children with lif- limiting illnesses across Westmeath, Offaly, Laois, and Longford.
“My role as a children’s outreach nurse is to help families care for their child with a life limiting illness. I help support parents through this challenging time, all the while working closely with our community-based colleagues to ensure a coordinated approach and continuity to the care provided to the children and their families. I act as an informed resource for professionals unfamiliar with the child’s condition. Essentially the level of care provided varies relative to the child’s condition, stage of their illness, other professionals’ involvement and the child and family’s wishes,” explained Ms Murphy.
