Jessica’s Story – Children’s Palliative Care in Singapore
In Singapore we meet Jessica and her family at the Hospice.
“Firstly I want to tell you the story about Jessica” Hendra, Jessica’s father says. “She’s a girl who has a lot of activities, through the school she went for choir, she went for ballet, for piano, she has a lot of activity. But one day we found that her health is gradually getting not so good. In the CT scan they found there is a lump on her mid brain, ah, so that make us very, ah, down.”
“I felt shocked. Like I couldn’t do anything.” Jessica’s mother Esther tells us. “All I could do was prey. We must pray a lot because honestly everyday being faced with this. Sometimes I’m not strong, sometimes I’m exhausted. But hear I feel grateful because our friends support us and give us strength.”
Jessica and her family moved from Indonesia to Singapore to get the medical assistance Jessica needed, including Palliative Care.
Irene Chan “Everything she has accomplished has been largely by herself, and really the encouragement and support she has received by her parents, that unconditional love which we can’t give helps to carry this element of hope for the family”.
“Because we have found encouragement from the people we meet in this place, in the hospice and palliative care. People who care about ask, asking what our background is, people who give their care, their skills to us so we can continue our life in a better situation.” Hendra.
“I think in Jessica’s case and in general with the younger patients it can be quite difficult to start a conversation about end-of life, they also want that little bit of hope, and I think it is fair for them to have that hope. That hope that perhaps things can get a bit better.” Dr Yew Seng Tan, Palliative Care Doctor.
Featuring
– Jessica
– Hendra
– Esther
– Jareal Bantilan – Hospice Physiotherapist
– Irene Chan – Hospice Administrator
– Dr Yew Seng Tan – Palliative Care Doctor
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