When a parent or other family member is facing serious illness, the entire family feels the impact. Children often experience fear, confusion, sadness, and uncertainty, yet they may not have the words or understanding to express what they are feeling.
At Paradigm Health, we believe hospice care should support the whole family. Heart Hugs was created to ensure that children and teens receive the care, attention, and guidance they need during one of life’s most difficult experiences.
What Is the Heart Hugs Program?
Heart Hugs is a program designed to support families with children when a parent, grandparent, or other family member is receiving hospice care and after a loss. The program focuses on helping children understand what is happening, express their emotions in healthy ways, and feel supported throughout the journey.
Children often experience grief differently than adults. Younger children may have difficulty understanding illness or death, while older children and teens may struggle with anxiety, anger, or feelings of isolation. Heart Hugs helps families address these challenges by providing both immediate support and connections to specialized grief resources.
One of the first ways Heart Hugs supports children is through the delivery of a Heart Hugs Comfort Pack. These packs are thoughtfully designed to provide children with tools that help them express their feelings and begin processing what is happening in their family.
Comfort and Connection for Children
Each Comfort Pack includes items such as age-appropriate books, activities, and comforting items that encourage children to talk about their feelings and ask questions. These simple tools can gently open the door for important conversations between children and caregivers.
Providing comfort and guidance early can help children feel less alone and more secure during a time when life may feel confusing and uncertain. “When we are in uncharted territory, such as a grief journey, we need all the help and guidance we can get. Reaching out for help and utilizing resources, such as Heart Hugs, will help make your journey a little easier and tomorrow a little brighter,” says Paradigm Health Chaplain Don Sanders.
Connecting Families to Specialized Grief Support
While Heart Hugs provides immediate support through the Paradigm Health team, families are also connected with trusted community partners who specialize in helping children navigate grief.
In central Indiana, Paradigm Health partners with Brooke’s Place, one of the state’s leading organizations dedicated to supporting grieving children, teens, and families. Brooke’s Place offers grief support groups, counseling services, educational programs, and camps designed specifically for children and adolescents coping with loss.
In northern Indiana, Paradigm Health works with Erin’s House for Grieving Children, an organization committed to providing peer support programs and resources for children, teens, and families experiencing grief. Erin’s House offers grief support groups, youth programs, and educational opportunities that help children feel understood and supported by others who share similar experiences.
Through these partnerships, families gain access to ongoing grief support that continues long after hospice care begins.
Investing in Training to Better Support Families
In addition to providing comfort packs and connecting families with community resources, Paradigm Health also invests in specialized training for our clinical teams.
Understanding how children experience grief requires unique skills and sensitivity. Our team members are receiving additional education focused on child development, communication with children about illness and death, and ways to support families as they navigate grief together.
This training helps ensure that our nurses, social workers, chaplains, and other care team members are prepared to guide families through difficult conversations and recognize when children may need additional support.
By strengthening our team’s knowledge and skills in this area, we are better equipped to provide compassionate, thoughtful care for families with young children.
Supporting the Whole Family
Serious illness affects more than the individual receiving care. It affects spouses, parents, siblings, and especially children. Programs like Heart Hugs offer an extra layer of support for children at a time when their world may feel uncertain.
“Our nature as parents is to protect our children from matters of life that hurt them. This journey, however, becomes an opportunity for them – even very young – to learn how to cope with loss they will have for the rest of their lives. As we support them in healthy ways, we are granting them a gift that will serve them for years to come!” Chaplain Rob Mifflin
Through compassionate support, meaningful resources, trusted community partnerships, and specialized staff training, Paradigm Health is committed to caring for the whole family. Heart Hugs is part of this commmitment.
Find out more on our Heart Hugs page.
