27.04.2022
- To date, more than 4,000 patients and more than 7,000 family members have been assisted by Matia's Psychosocial Care Team (EAPS).
- Matia's EAPS has extended the psychosocial care it has been providing since 2009 in hospitals and homes to five residences in Gipuzkoa
(Donostia-San Sebastián, April 27, 2022).
During the 2021 financial year, Matia has extended the psychosocial care it has been providing since 2009 in hospitals and homes to five residences: Argixao; Bermingham; Iza; Otezuri; and Rezola.
In this first year of activity, 48 residents and 24 family members were assisted in the period from April to December 2021.
A strategic plan has also been drawn up to plan the development and innovation of the program in Gipuzkoa over the next 5 years.
This program, developed jointly by Matia and the "la Caixa" Foundation, offers patients emotional, social and spiritual support, as well as support for families and health and social-health professionals working with people with advanced or terminal illnesses.
The program thus contributes to improving the quality of life of people with advanced illnesses, extending the basic health care provided by medical and nursing professionals in palliative care. At the same time, it promotes new avenues of action in the field of palliative care and collaborates through outreach activities to raise public awareness of end-of-life and palliative care.
During the time of the pandemic, the alternative of providing telematic care was consolidated. Thus, in situations of confinement, limitation of visits or isolation, it has been possible to continue offering psychological support via video call or phone call to sick people, their families and bereaved people.
On the other hand, the approval of the Euthanasia Law in 2021 has implications for our work of psychosocial care at the end of life. From the first cases, we already started to have experience in the psychological accompaniment of the patient and his family when there is a request made to the physician for help in dying.
The program in figures
In 2021, 315 new patients in hospitals, residences and homes and 439 new family members joined the Program of Comprehensive Care for People with Advanced Illnesses, with almost 1,000 sessions held with patients and more than 1,100 with family members.
In the area of bereavement, 156 new people have been worked with, nearly 1,700 individual bereavement care sessions have been carried out, 3 new bereavement groups have been created and 85 group bereavement sessions have been held.
The psychosocial care team, which operates in Gipuzkoa and is made up of 6 psychologists, is one of 45 teams that make up this program and is present in all the autonomous communities with a total of 280 professionals working.
In Gipuzkoa, the program intervenes in the Ricardo Bermingham Hospital, Donostia University Hospital, Mendaro Hospital, Zumárraga Hospital, Bidasoa Hospital, Alto Deba Hospital, Assumption Clinic in Tolosa, in the residential centers Argixao, Otezuri, Bermingham, Rezola and Iza, all managed by Matia, and in six home support teams.
To date, more than 4,000 patients and more than 7,000 family members have been assisted by Matia's Psychosocial Care Team (EAPS).
About Matia
Matia Fundazioa is a private non-profit foundation in the general interest with more than 130 years of experience. It is a reference in the care of the elderly in Gipuzkoa and in research on aging at national and international level. Working on the principles of person-centered care, its purpose is to accompany people in their aging process to improve their welfare, generating knowledge and personalized services that promote their autonomy and dignity.
In 2002, it decided to create a research institute (Matia Institute) that facilitates the integration of research/action and the generation of knowledge based on evidence and daily practice.