A Circle of Hope

Reach for Recovery was the first known support group formed under the umbrella of the Cancer Association of Namibia (CAN), with the sole aim of supporting women diagnosed with breast cancer.The support group came about as a result of a patient who was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer in May 2002, and who decided to join an existing informal group of breast cancer survivors and volunteers. During the infant stages of Reach for Recovery in Namibia, a lot of noteworthy assistance was rendered by Reach for Recovery - Cape Town. In the following years, Reach for Recovery continued to grow in terms of members and volunteers alike, offering support to newly diagnosed breast cancer patients, their families and survivors.In 2016, CAN transformed the Reach for Recovery programme into an all-inclusive support group that provides support to all cancer patients and their families.In 2017, the Family Support Centre, an official new department of CAN was established, along with the Circle of Hope and the Patient Financial Assistance Programme falling under this department.Today Circle of Hope provides support to men, women and children affected by cancer. It fulfils this mandate by training volunteers to improve the quality of life of cancer patients and their families by providing psycho-social support and raising awareness of cancer in society.Services provided by Circle of Hope include training of volunteers and raising awareness. The group also hosts information sessions at schools, organisations, clinics and doing community outreach programmes.During awareness campaigns, volunteers are required to be interactive at all times, hand out pamphlets and take note of questions raised and provide answer where possible.Providing psychosocial support for patients and their families encompasses attending to patients who have been diagnosed with cancer; attending to parents of children with cancer; and attending to caregivers of cancer patients.In terms of facilitating support groups, the focus is to provide a forum for education, exploration, and confrontation on disease- specific issues and concerns, while changing behaviour, attitude, lifestyle, and relationships with others to promote health and wellbeing and reduce psychological discomfort.The Family Support Group was launched recently and focuses on group session counselling with cancer patients, families or friends affected by a cancer diagnosis of their loved one.The people working directly with Circle of Hope are volunteers, including psychosocial support. They are Barbra Nyathi (psychologist), sr Christy Kavetuna (CAN nurse), Martha Angolo and Sharlene Bergh (cancer survivors) and many others.(health@can.org.na; www.can.org.na)

A Circle of Hope

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Republikein 2025-05-02

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A Circle of Hope

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