We met up with Laurienne Abrahams who is the current Assistant Manager and she explained to us her journey through work, experiences of palliative care and the impact @Peace Care are making in the communities in which they serve.
Background & Experiences
She started working @Peace Care roughly 6 years ago when the organisation had just been formed. At that point there were no patients, no paper work, it was really just the organisation with a long term goal in mind and ready to get hard at work to reach and attain it.
“Before @Peace Care, I worked in George. I had heard of the opportunity of working at @Peace Care and honestly it has been the best move I could ever have made”, she stated. For Laurienne, working for hospice changes your personal view on life, it enables you to really look deep into your own personal life and how you live; to become grateful and to know that at times you really don’t know how difficult life can be out there for others compared to your own. She has realised that and it’s had a major impact on her.
Need in the community
She touched on the need in the community for palliative care. Currently, @Peace care, which is a small facility in comparison to other bigger hospices, have been able to reach out to over 1200 patients during the past 6 years since they opened, with 800 of those 1200 patients being unique ones. For Laurienne that indicates the real obvious need that is in the community for hospice and palliative care.
Growing up through @Peace Care Centre
As many a time most people who come into contact with hospice, either know very little about it before or nothing at all. In this case she did not know anything and just had an administrative background, so for Laurienne she “grew up” up at @Peace Care Centre, and learnt how to practise compassion, empathy, and sympathy which have become part of her life in more ways than one.
She has learnt that working with patients through hospice and palliative care is a constant learning experience between you and the patient, because one day is not always the same as the other. Laurienne is another fine example of someone who has grown in her role and can really advocate for the great work @Peace are doing, as well as the impact that palliative makes and more importantly, the need that is out there for it!
Learn more about @Peace Care Centre here.
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