An innovative cancer support service, which has already successfully helped hundreds of people in Wandsworth, is now available to cancer patients in Croydon and Merton.
Here to help: the Macmillan link worker team (from left) Phoebe Jeffrey, Sam Moreno and Elaine Nangle
Funded by Macmillan Cancer Support, and in partnership with Enable, Macmillan Community Cancer Link Workers can help people with cancer access the information and support they need.
Available by phone, face-to-face appointments, or via video call, the team offers personalised support to patients and their carers. Whether it’s someone struggling due to the cost-of-living crisis, or the emotional impact of a cancer diagnosis.
They can also help people facing employment and housing issues as a result of having cancer, by signposting and referring to useful local and national support services.
Macmillan is spending more than £445,000 into expanding the community link worker service into Croydon and Merton.
The Macmillan link worker service is open to anyone impacted by cancer who is aged 18 or older and a resident of Croydon, Merton or Wandsworth. The service can be accessed by self-referral, or you can be referred by any healthcare professional or voluntary or community organisation.
“We’re here to bridge the gap between people’s concerns and accessing support,” said Sam Moreno, one of the Macmillan Community Cancer Link Workers.
“And being community-based, I’m in a great position to signpost and refer people to accessible services that match what they’re looking for.
“Most of us will be impacted by cancer at some point. When my closest friend died of metastatic bladder cancer in 2017, the support from Macmillan was one thing that helped to make the toughest of times more bearable. As a Macmillan Community Cancer Link Worker, I’ll be striving to improve the experiences of people living with and beyond cancer by helping meet their non-medical needs.”
And one of Moreno’s colleagues, Elaine Nangle, said, “The sheer volume of new information people with cancer have to take on board is just immense. From processing a diagnosis, to different treatment modes and learning the medical language, to how cancer will impact daily life, family and work – it can be really overwhelming.
“It is a real privilege to have an opportunity to possibly make this time a little less difficult.”
For more information about the service, email: waccg.cancerlinkworker@nhs.net.
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