Karen’s Home from Home brings new support for leukaemia patients

Two new flats which give Addenbrooke’s leukaemia patients and their families the chance to stay on site overnight will officially open on Monday 26 September.

 

Known as Karen’s Home from Home, the two-bedroom flats in Linton House, on the Cambridge University Hospitals campus, have been made available for the dedicated use of leukaemia patients and their carers. They give family members the chance to stay on site during treatment, whilst also offering patients the chance to take a break from the wards.

 

The flats have been funded by the Karen Morris Memorial Trust, which was set up in memory of a 23-year-old student who passed away of chronic myeloid leukaemia in 1998. This is the country’s third Karen’s Home from Home, coming after similar facilities were opened at Hammersmith Hospital in London and the Churchill Hospital in Oxford.

 

Linda Gidman, clinical nurse specialist at Cambridge University Hospitals, said: “These Homes from Home are making a real difference to leukaemia patients receiving treatment at Addenbrooke’s. By offering their families or carers somewhere comfortable and convenient to stay, the flats are reducing the need for them to travel while giving reassurance that they are close at hand if their loved one needs them. This can have a big impact by helping to ease anxiety at what is a very stressful time.”

 

Lorraine George and her husband Philip have been using the flats while their 19-year-old son Robert receives treatment for acute myeloid leukaemia.

 

Mrs George, who lives in Essex, said: “Linton House is a truly wonderful facility, and provides a Home from Home for families whose stress levels are running at near to breaking point. They take away a lot of worry and potential expense for a family which is facing the scary world of leukaemia and may be a long way from home.

 

“For us to be able to stay on the hospital campus is something we shall always be grateful for. To try and sleep knowing we are only a few minutes away from Rob helps both him and us enormously. As well as providing us with the best possible base to help us support our son, the flat also gives him the chance to escape from the ward, partake in a little home cooking and watch the cricket.

 

“We would like to thank Karen Morris’ family who have used their own experiences to help them provide a fantastic facility for others facing similar times of difficulty.”

 

Matt Lucas, patron of KMMT, said: “I just wanted to say how delighted I am to hear that the great work of the Trust continues, over ten years since Karen’s death.

 

“It is a great tribute to her and to everyone who has worked tirelessly in her memory that we have been able to acquire more vital space for the benefit of those being treated with and affected by leukaemia. Like the other Homes from Home, I have no doubt that the latest addition to the family will provide the warmth and security so invaluable to those who need it.”

> Karen Morris Memorial Trust

 

 

 

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