On April 3, this year, Hospices of Hope (HoH) Moldova signed a grant contract with the financial support of the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) through the ADA Small Grants Programme.

The funds are dedicated for the development and implementation of a training program for family members of people in palliative care at home, which will contribute to inclusive employment and empowerment with the necessary knowledge for palliative care service provision. Following the training, family members of palliative patients will get the necessary qualifications to become personal assistants, enhancing their opportunities for employment and economic empowerment.

An important aspect is dedicated to the acquisition of knowledge and skills regarding the needs of caring for a terminally ill person, including increasing psycho-emotional resilience and preventing physical exhaustion caused by professional stress.

Through the implemented activities, the aim is to improve the quality of life for both patients and their family members. When a close relative is terminally ill and faces a lack of available or financially accessible care services, family members are often forced to leave their jobs.

With the financial support of ADA, HoH Moldova will contribute to improving the situation of caregivers both psycho-emotionally and socially. Family caregivers of terminally ill patients suffer job loss and severe work-related difficulties due to caregiving and fatigue.

HoH Moldova is the leading provider of free palliative care and social support services for terminally ill patients and their immediate families. Part of the teams' work is educating family members on how to care for their sick relatives, as there is an acute shortage of trained staff in Moldova to provide quality palliative care services.