Volunteers and staff of Ronald McDonald House in Perth work day and night to make the lives of sick children, their parents and siblings more bearable. They provide top quality housing, food, transport and teaching for children, their caretakers and siblings who are being treated in Perth Children's Hospital. Sometimes they meet parents and children in times of crisis, sometimes they get to know each other over the years. Recently there has grown a need to know more about the complex phenomenon of grief and coping with loss. Volunteers and staff want to learn more about what grief is, how they can help those involved in it, and how to stay healthy themselves in witnessing the heartbrokenness of childen and parents on a regular basis. 

Because of my background as a Chaplain working in Perth Children's Hospital, management has contacted me to work with them. In multiple 90 minutes training sessions I offer a space for volunteers and staff to share their grief and struggles. We also exchange information about what grief is, how they can help parents and children in coping with the sometimes hardship in life (within the limits of the RMDH setting), and help each other in finding ways to handle the demands that come with the job in a personally satisfactory and suitable way.