illness Archives - Axis Foundation

Asthma Relief

December 5, 2022By Axis Foundation

Our donation buys nebulisers for people with asthma.

Asthma Relief provides essential Medical Breathing Equipment such as nebulisers to hospitals, doctors’ surgeries, medical centres, hospices and palliative care teams.

The Axis Foundation was delighted to donate £5,700 to Asthma Relief to purchase 30 nebulisers to support their Hospices in London programme.

“Asthma Relief Charity was delighted to receive a grant of £5700.00 from the Axis Foundation. This grant will help support hospice patients in London who need nebuliser treatment as part of their vitally important palliative care. We have already allocated 20 nebulisers, 10 of which were placed at the Royal Trinity Hospice. We were absolutely thrilled to learn that the hospice now has a nebuliser available for every room on the Inpatient Unit!

On behalf of Asthma Relief Charity, the hospices, patients and carers we would like to say A HUGE THANK YOU to the Axis Foundation” – Dave Penman, Founder & Honorary Manager

More About Asthma Relief

The Swindon-based charity responds to urgent requests for nebulisers. Requests can come from anxious parents, patients, doctors, the isolated or the elderly. For all of them – they or a loved one may be struggling to breathe – every moment is precious.

Additionally, they aim to assist anyone whose life is restricted by a breathing condition to be able to go about their day as normally as possible. So, they might enable a child with severe breathing difficulties to go on family or school outings; or supply a machine for an older patient, helping them get out of the home and engage more. They can also support terminally ill patient to be at home to spend their final days with loved ones.

There’s more here here

“Thank you so much for the deliveries – they are hugely appreciated Now, more than ever, they are needed to keep people out of hospital and give them care wherever we can provide it. We will be distributing to care homes and suitable venues and we will make sure they are put to good use” – a Doctor

“Just a line to say a “Big Thank You” for not only sourcing a very much needed nebuliser for me but for getting it to us so quickly! I’ve been using it 4 times a day since Thursday and can already feel a huge relief. Thanks to you I can now breathe easier and deeper without wheezing. No words can ever thank you enough, during this stressful time. You are amazing people. People like myself wouldn’t survive without you. Thank You” – a patient

Care

The Chartwell Children’s Cancer Trust

September 16, 2022By Axis Foundation

We help develop new app for cancer patients

The Axis Foundation donated £10,000 to help The Chartwell Children’s Cancer Trust develop a brand-new app, the first of its kind in the UK, designed and created to help young cancer patients, families and clinical care teams.

‘As a charity we a have a tireless commitment to the oncology communities we serve. This technology-driven healthcare solution represents a hugely exciting step forward in how cancer patients and families are supported. We are delighted that the Axis Foundation shares our values and has invested in the development of this innovative app which is set to make a huge impact across the country. I would like to share heart-felt thanks on behalf of the team at the Trust and the beneficiaries of this project” – Michael Douglas, Charity founder and Trustee

“The commencement of the development phase would not have been possible without your support and the
process is yielding fantastic results working in collaboration with patients, families, technology and clinical
specialists. We are so grateful to work with like-minded funders such as yourselves who share our commitment to
this cause” – Natalie Reilly, Trustee

Our App will include:

• Clinical information about specific cancer diagnoses, treatment, procedures
• Explanations about clinical care teams/ surroundings
• Practical tips, advice, do’s and don’ts for caring for young patients
• Real life testimonials from children/ families
• Links to physical/ digital support groups, charities, organisations
• Research opportunities, clinical trials, funding

Aggregating critical up-to-date clinical information the app gives young cancer patients, families and clinical care teams access to comprehensive, high quality, evidence-based education resources direct to a phone or tablet.

It will assist families with decision-making, advance preparation for treatment, orientation around processes and care pathways and connection to support networks and resources within and beyond the NHS.

The team creating the app comprises experts in technology and software development, clinical care and Childhood Cancer Research, educational content creators, videographers and animators all working in close collaboration with hospital Trusts and Children’s Cancer Research specialists.

More about The Chartwell Children’s Cancer Trust

The Chartwell Children’s Cancer Trust supports Paediatric Oncology communities and local Cancer and Leukaemia services across London and the South East. They work in collaboration with the NHS from Princess Royal University Hospital, Queen Elizabeth Hospital Woolwich to King’s College Hospital, Guy’s Hospital and Croydon University Hospital to make vital improvements to patient care. Their goal is to allay information overwhelm, alleviate stress and feelings of isolation, optimise patient experience and improve health outcomes for patients. There’s more here

Safer home for little boy with epilepsy

September 7, 2021By Axis Foundation

Safer home for Curtis who has a rare form of epilepsy – Dravet Syndrome

Curtis, age four, suffers from frequent seizures and needs round-the-clock care. And summer heatwaves resulted in a seizure and a hospital visit for Curtis and his parents Emily and Carl.

On behalf of Curtis and his family, James Garlick, Digital & IT Service Delivery Manager at Axis, applied to the Axis Foundation for support – in the form of air-conditioning units. James explained that simply keeping Curtis cool reduces the constant risk of seizure and makes his home safer for him.

The Axis Foundation paid for the air con, and Axis operatives installed the units in Curtis’ bedroom and playroom and in the lounge.

“We want to say a huge thank you to the Foundation for investing in this for us. We can never convey how much your support means to our family – you’ve made our home a safe place for Curtis all year round” – Emily, Curtis’ mum

Curtis’ mother Emily explains more

“Due to Curtis’s very rare syndrome (Dravet) he is unable to properly regulate his temperature. This is a significant issue because when he gets too hot he is susceptible to seizures. These can range from increased seizure activity, leaving him unable to focus on a task, to a full tonic clonic seizure, involving initiating his rescue plan and a trip to A&E.

“This led us to start to feel anxious for him around the summer months, especially with increasingly frequent spikes in temperature for prolonged periods. We invested in portable air con units but these confined Curtis confined to two rooms of the house; often being fed, playing and changed in one room all day.

“He’s a reasonably active four year old, who wants to run about from time to time. So this often led to frustrations for both him and us. Furthermore, moving the air con units around the house is extremely difficult because they weigh around 30kgs each.

The difference for Curtis

“The new, properly fitted air con allows Curtis to live and play safely and normally in the house as any child should. He will be able to use the full extent of downstairs now and we can let him run around without fear that he’ll overheat due to the weather.

The difference for Emily and Carl

“It really will be life changing for us. We’ll no longer have to carry a unit up to his bedroom to try and cool it before he sleeps and can hopefully adjust the temperature to keep him cool all night.

It’s a massive relief for us and gives us back a bit of normality in the summer months. It will remove the constant anxiety we have for him in the summer.”

Thanks to Axis Foundation from Curtis’ grandparents

We can never thank you enough… It was the most wonderful gift you could bestow on Curtis and our family – the continuation of our dear little grandson’s life. It is so wonderful in 21st century when we hear on the news everyday of shootings; stabbings and all the violence that a lot of people impose on their fellow humans to hear of people who are prepared to go that extra mile at their own expense, to help families have a better quality of life.

More about Dravet Syndrome here

Care

Paul’s Cancer Support Centre

February 8, 2018By Axis Foundation

Training volunteers to help cancer patients

Volunteers at Paul’s Cancer Support Centre provide emotional, physical and psychological support for 500 cancer patients a year. The Centre also has a Home Visiting Service for 100 patients who are too frail to make the journey to the premises in south west London.

The Axis Foundation has made two donations to Paul’s Cancer Support Centre. Our first donation (£3,300 in 2017) recruited and trained four massage therapists, three reflexologists and one befriender; our second (£2,500 in 2018) trained nine new Home Visiting Service volunteers.

“On behalf of the Trustees, staff, volunteers and clients at Paul’s Cancer Support Centre, I would like to thank you and your Fellow Trustees for all your support. We are truly grateful” – Scheherazade Ameer, Fundraising Manager

“Funding into our volunteers’ training is vital for us to provide support for cancer patients. We are so appreciative of the grant we received from the Axis Foundation. We cannot deliver our services without volunteers” – Marisca Ribeiro, Services Manager

More About Training

Scheherazade Ameer, Fundraising Manager, explained: “All our Home Visiting Service volunteers have to complete our high-quality, specially-designed 32-hour course. A nationally recognised expert in cancer and bereavement counselling has assessed our course as ‘a model of excellence’. We then match our Volunteers to Home Visiting Service clients once we receive their DBS approval.”

A Trainee Home Visitor told us: “Helping others is a humbling experience which also provides a great amount of satisfaction. I hope to gain a better understanding of the challenges those with cancer face so I can provide more effective and supportive massage treatments to them and contribute to improving their predicament, even if for a short while.”

A Home Visiting Service client said: “During a time when I was housebound, barely able to move about and seeking psychological and emotional assistance, this was the only local organisation who was able to provide face-to-face counselling in my own home; I am so grateful for that, and for how quickly it was organised.”

Child cared for at Demelza sat with parents.

News

Inaugural Golf Day – £54,000 to Demelza

May 13, 2017By Axis Foundation

We donate £54,000 – the equivalent of 2,680 hours of nursing care – to Demelza – at our inaugural celebrity charity golf day

At the first Axis Foundation Celebrity Charity Golf Day in June 2017, the Axis Foundation presented a cheque for £54,000 to Demelza’s Adopt a Nurse scheme. The sum is the equivalent of 2,680 hours of nursing care.

Receiving the cheque, Demelza CEO Ryan Campbell said: “Everyone who works for or with Axis has gone above and beyond to support our families, raising vital funds so that we can continue to help those families when they need us the most. You have showed unbelievable spirit and determination, completing incredibly difficult challenges and raising a truly outstanding amount of money for Demelza’s Adopt a Nurse programme.”

Demelza Parent Mette explained: “As well as memory-making and emotional support Demelza also gave practical help – from the community nursing team making phone calls and liaising with various agencies to staff at the hospice tackling paperwork. We didn’t need to worry about the cooking, cleaning, washing – we could just focus on Thomas.”

Alan Curbishley, Foundation patron and tv sports pundit, has kindly lent his name to the golf day: the Alan Curbishley Classic. Our first golf day was so popular it is scheduled to become an annual favourite in everyone’s sporting calendar! And thanks to our generous guests and supporters, on the day, we raised £18,000 to help Demelza and other small, local and impactful causes via the Axis Foundation.

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