Linc launches 5-year strategy to bring new blood cancer services to local patients and families

Gloucester

Local charity Linc has announced a range of new services under its new five-year plan to help even more patients and families in Gloucestershire dealing with a blood cancer diagnosis and beyond.

The plan was unveiled in front of nearly 100 people including patients and clinicians on 25 March during a special event at the Patch, The Forum in Gloucester. Linc is one of the oldest hospital charities in the county. Since 1998, it has supported tens of thousands of adults and their families to cope with the impact of living with blood cancer. Funding Clinical Psychologists care, clinical trial nurses and providing financial support through its Linc Fund are some of the critical services it provides.

Now Linc, which still sits within the Haematology departments at Gloucester Royal Hospital and Cheltenham General Hospital, is announcing a significant major milestone in its expansion, launching its own free counselling service for patients and families delivered in a welcoming non-clinical space at the Patch at The Forum in the heart of Gloucester. Patients and family members can now gain access to two levels of clinical care – counselling for those with moderate to more complex emotional needs (level 3) and psychologist care (level 4) to those experiencing more severe stress.

Recent data shows that around 1 in 3 cancer patients experience anxiety and over 1 in 4 experience depression, while 25% of caregivers for cancer patients report depressive symptoms. In developing its new strategy, Linc, a patient-led charity, worked closely with both patients and clinicians, ran focus groups and surveys to better understand their experiences and priorities. 86% said that one-to-one counselling is important along with support for families and children for 98%.

One such patient is local Bishops Cleeve resident, Nikki Tandy, whose recent lymphoma diagnosis impacted her husband and son aged 8.

Paul Tandy said: “I couldn’t sleep that first night post diagnosis, the safe space in my head that told me all was well in the world, was now surrounded by worries, doubts and emotions. These feelings were compounded during Nikki’s treatment. Linc arranged for me to speak to Poppy, one of their funded clinical psychologists who helped me to release all my pent-up emotions as well as equip me with the mental tools to deal with them. This has taught me to live and enjoy the present and that worrying about the ‘What if’s’ is counterproductive and a waste of mental energy.”

Nikki added: “The Linc Clinical Psychology team give you a guided way through the dark. Both Paul and I have been fortunate to have access to this service and really value the difference it has made.”

The new Linc counselling service will provide tailored, free emotional support to people living with blood cancer, and their families, designed to minimise waiting times, ideally removing them altogether, so individuals can access support when they need it most. Linc will work closely with the NHS to ensure patients quickly reach the most appropriate level of care.

Louise Neal, CEO of Linc said “Blood cancer affects the wider family. Patients are commonly concerned with the strain their diagnosis will have on their loved ones so it’s important that families have access to a range of support services including accessible counselling support as often not everyone needs intensive psychological care. These were points that came out of our extensive research with feedback from patients, families and clinicians shaping our expansion plans.

“Our new dedicated Linc counselling space will create a more accessible and comfortable environment where patients and their families can receive support away from the hospital setting where they receive their treatment. Alongside this, we will be expanding our support groups including a new peer‑support programme hosted at Patch for patients to connect with others in a comfortable and relaxed setting.”

Over the next five years Linc will also:-

Double the financial assistance offered through Linc Fund, which provides patients with critical financial support such as mortgage and rent payments, childcare costs and alternative pain relief.

Design a work plan highlighting improvements that can be made across the clinical spaces and waiting areas at both Gloucester Royal Hospital and Cheltenham General Hospital.

Explore the opportunity to develop dedicated patient transport services to support the cost and accessibility challenges faced by many patients.

Louise added: “A blood cancer diagnosis can change every aspect of a person’s life, and the impact is often felt just as strongly by the people around them. Linc needs to support all these people to the best of our ability. To do this, we need to continue to listen to patients, keep vital services, and, when needed, be innovative, adopting a fresh approach to our work. Our five-year plan sets out how we will achieve this.”

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