A new service to ensure cancer patients are offered emotional, practical and financial support has been launched in Dundee.
Macmillan Cancer Support and The Dundee Health and Social Care Partnership are working with a range of partners across the city to make sure cancer patients in the city can access all the help they need – by making just one phone call.
The new Improving the Cancer Journey service will see every newly diagnosed cancer patient in Dundee sent a letter offering a meeting with a dedicated one-to-one support worker. The worker will then help the patient access a wide range of support, from benefits advice and emotional support to help at home or with other practical needs. Anyone currently living with cancer can also access the service by simply calling the team to arrange an appointment.
Macmillan Cancer Support has invested £1m into the project, which will see The Health and Social Care Partnership, Dundee City Council, Leisure & Culture Dundee, NHS Tayside and other third sector organisations working together to provide a seamless, accessible and personal support for people affected by cancer.
Chair of the Dundee Health and Social Care Partnership Ken Lynn said: “This new and ground-breaking service will work with a range of partners to get the best possible outcomes for people affected by cancer.
“Work is important for many people with cancer or caring for someone with cancer, for lots of reasons. Going to work can give a sense of normality to their life, and it can also help with recovery.
“Managers and employers have an important role in supporting people with cancer and their carers. This can often be done by making reasonable adjustments to the workplace or working patterns.
“There are many steps your business could take to support employees living with cancer, including: checking your policies are up to date, providing training for your managers, and raising awareness of cancer amongst employees in offices and workplaces.”
Dundee is a city with higher than average incidence of all main cancers. There are just under 6000 people living with cancer in Dundee.This is expected to grow to over 8000 by 2030.
In the UK more than 112,000 people of working age are diagnosed with cancer each year. ‘Working age’ generally means people aged from 16 to 64.Macmillan Cancer Support also estimates that there are 700,000 employees caring for someone with cancer in the UK.
While it’s good news that advances in treatment mean that more people than ever are surviving, it also means that people living with cancer are living longer, often with long-term effects of treatment or other health conditions that have a huge impact on health, wellbeing and independence. Many of them don't know where to go for help coping with the non-medical effects of the illness.
Macmillan's Head of Services in Scotland, Janice Preston, said: “Cancer has a huge impact on every aspect of people's lives with many saying that they don't know where to turn for help. The Dundee Macmillan Improving the Cancer Journey service will make sure everyone in Dundee with cancer has someone to call on for help, no matter what they need.
“We also hope local employers will support this service and work with us to transform cancer support in Dundee and help people with cancer to live their lives.”
The Dundee Macmillan Improving the Cancer Journey Service is open to everyone aged 18 and over living with cancer regardless of their cancer type or where they live in the city. To find out more call 01382 433340 or email improving.cancerjourney@dundeecity.gov.uk
You can find out more about how your business can support people at work who are living with cancer at:
https://www.macmillan.org.uk/information-and-support/organising/work-and-cancer/
Macmillan Cancer Support
We’re here to help you find your best way through from the moment of diagnosis, so you’re able to live life as fully as you can. For information, support or just someone to talk to, call 0808 808 00 00 or visit macmillan.org.uk. To support our fundraising, call 0300 1000 200 or email fundraising@macmillan.org.uk.
Dundee City Council
Dundee draws skilled workers from a 60-minute catchment population of 640,000 and has a local population of over 140,000. The availability of a large pool of highly skilled labour is a key feature in the Dundee economy. Flexibility in the labour force is currently more prevalent in Dundee than in Scotland as a whole. All forms of labour market flexibility - part-time, temporary employment, self-employment and shift work - are widely operational within the city. Labour force stability in the city is excellent, enabling companies to plan with confidence. Labour turnover levels are less than 5% and absenteeism averages 2%.
