CHAS Services

CHAS offers highly personalised care for the entire family and not just the child who is ill. Children’s palliative care is a total and holistic approach to supporting a child and their family. The doctors, nurses, pharmacists, physiotherapists, social workers, and family support specialists at CHAS provide a range of services for children and families. CHAS also works in deep partnership with health boards and local authorities, to ensure the right support is provided where and when the family need it throughout their child’s life, no matter how short. CHAS also supports bereaved families as they grieve the death of their child.

How CHAS provides care

• CHAS provides support in the early days after a child is diagnosed with a life-shorting condition and can help emotionally, clinically, and practically.
• CHAS helps the whole family – including parents and siblings – to live well with complexity, worry and uncertainty. CHAS helps children be included and have fun, creating precious memories that will last a lifetime. Respite care gives families time to be a family, to rest, and to get specialist medical advice. The social workers at CHAS help navigate complex situations for families.
• CHAS is there at the end of life, supporting children to die with dignity, following their and their parents’ wishes. CHAS helps in the difficult days after a child dies and provides immediate and ongoing bereavement support even in the years ahead.

Where CHAS offers care

In hospice: CHAS provides integrated palliative and end of life care as well as respite care for the whole family in two hospices, Rachel House in Kinross and Robin House in Balloch.

In home and outreach services: the CHAS outreach team operates in every local authority area - providing highly skilled nursing care for children in their own homes (often in partnership with local teams), as well as a full family support service. This includes social work, income maximisation, energy advice, spiritual and bereavement support, transition to adult services for 16 – 21s, and therapeutic play.

In hospital: There is a joint CHAS/NHS specialist team in every children’s hospital in Scotland. The only specialist Paediatric Palliative Medicine posts in Scotland are funded by CHAS. Diana Children’s Nurses provide specialist support alongside the NHS in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.