Helping Your Teen Transfer to Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Transcription

1 Helping Your Teen Transfer to Princess Margaret Cancer Centre Information for families of teens Princess Margaret Read this booklet to learn: about your teen s transfer to Princess Margaret Cancer Centre why this transfer is important some difficulties your teen may have how you can help who to contact if you have any questions Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Pediatric After Care Clinic 610 University Avenue Toronto, Ontario M5G 2M9 (416) Please visit the UHN Patient Education website for more health information: University Health Network. All rights reserved. This information is to be used for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult your health care provider for advice about a specific medical condition. A single copy of these materials may be reprinted for non-commercial personal use only. Author: Sick Kids/ Princess Margaret Transition Team Created: 03/2005 Form: D-5090 (09/2013)

2 Why is my teen being transferred to Princess Margaret Cancer Centre? Your teen will be moved or transferred to Princess Margaret Cancer Centre (or PM) to continue their medical care. The team at PM specializes in medical follow up for survivors of childhood cancer. They will continue to check your teen so they stay healthy. Change is never easy. We know that this move can be a difficult transition for the whole family. We want to let you know that we are here to help your family during this time. Welcome to PM. We look forward to getting to know you and your teen! Are things done differently at Princess Margaret? As a caregiver of a child with cancer, you have had many responsibilities. You were responsible for getting and understanding medical information. You also made most of the decisions. At PM, we ask teens and young adults to be in charge of their health care. Moving to this next stage can be difficult. But, helping teens become more active in their health care will help them prepare for adulthood. Why is this transfer important? Transition means to go through a change. In this case, the change means your teen is moving toward adulthood and the adult health care system. As their family, you go through this change with them. Teens normally go through many changes. These changes can affect their ability to fit into the adult health care system. These changes include: changes in their body and hormones becoming more independent their identity (the person they are becoming) future school, job, and relationship choices 2

3 At PM, teens will become more active in their health care. Many teens who take on this new role find they become more self-confident. They have a chance to learn important life-skills like asking questions about their health and treatment. What are some common difficulties with transition? Most teens struggle with transition or any change. It is common for them to behave in ways like: acting very emotional (ups and downs) resenting their parents, teachers, coaches or other adults doubting themselves and feeling self-conscious spending more time with friends wanting to spend more time away from home While your teen is going through these changes they will need your continued support. How can I help my teen? There are many ways you can help your teen go through changes. Most teens feel that their family can help them by: letting them have more freedom to make their own decisions letting them choose who they want as friends listening to them without giving opinions or judging them understanding that they are changing and respecting those changes letting them know that their family cares about them, even when the teen pushes family away being there for them when they are in trouble or make mistakes trusting them more to manage their own lives 3

4 Use these tips to help your teen move to Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. These tips will help your teen be more active in their health: Talk with your teen about their health issues and any long-term effects. Talk with them about their future health plans and goals. Encourage your teen to spend more time talking to health care staff on their own. Encourage your teen to ask health care staff questions about their treatments and future health. Help them make their own decisions by talking about their choices. Help your teen become more independent. For example, ask them to: book their own appointments take their scheduled medicines on their own be responsible for eating well Talk about the care your teen will need as an adult. This can include: specialists insurance coverage support groups community services Talk with them about healthy lifestyle choices. Encourage them to do fun activities, exercise or hobbies. Continue to support them. Your teen will still sometimes need your help. **Used by permission from Children's and Women's Health Centre of B.C., January 2004, Who can help if my teen is having problems? Sometimes teens still have difficulty adjusting, even with support. There are people who can help, if your teen is having trouble coping at: home school or at the hospital 4

5 Talk to your teen's family doctor or your Sick Kids Aftercare team before the transition. They can help you find the right kind of help. Let your teen know that you are worried and that they may need some help. When your teen is a patient at PM, staff of the Psychosocial Oncology Program can help. This program has a team of professionals including: social workers psychologists psychiatrists They can help you and your teen cope. Call us to make an appointment. You and or your teen can talk with them about: surviving a childhood cancer living with the long-term side effects of cancer treatment coping with family problems including drug coverage or financial problems dealing with feelings like sadness and loss Contact us at: Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Psychosocial Oncology 16th floor Phone: (416) Website: PsychosocialClinic/Pages/about-us.aspx Where can I get more general information? Resource centres: The Hospital for Sick Children: About Kids Health Main Floor (416)

6 Princess Margaret Cancer Centre: Patient and Family Library (416) ext Take a virtual tour of PM: html These two libraries have books, videos and pamphlets for you to borrow. They also have computers and staff to help you find more information. These resources are free. Ask about the Oncology Interactive Education Series (OIES). It s a good learning program for patients and families. Patient education web sites: The Hospital for Sick Children: public.affairs.dept@sickkids.ca Princess Margaret Cancer Centre: aspx patienteducationpmh@uhn.on.ca The patient education web sites tell you about hospital events and programs. You can also use the web site to look for more information on the Internet. Who can I call if I have questions? The team at Sick Kids will care for your teen until their first appointment at PM. If you have questions or concerns, call the Contact Nurse at Sick Kids. You can call Mona Pedlar, assistant to Dr. David Hodgson and Dr. Barbara Ann Millar at or Mona at mona.pedlar@uhn.ca if you have any questions. 6

7 You can also find more information about the After Care Clinic by visiting: The development of patient education resources is supported by the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation. 7