Free clothes ‘shop’ for cash-strapped cancer patients
A new charity at Antwerp hospital caters for patients suffering financial hardship because of their cancer diagnosis
Patient poverty
Last month the volunteers created a “clothes shop without a cash register” in two rooms of a historic building at the Sint-Vincentius campus of Antwerp’s GZA Hospitals network.
Patient support group Waaier helped set up the project after a team of nurses and paramedics at GZA came up with the idea. Cancer patients within the hospital network can now find clothes, shoes, accessories, books, toys and games in Huis Klaas, where everything is new or in excellent condition.
One room is dedicated to children’s items and the other to adults, and subsequent rooms in the impressive building – a former nursing school – may be used in future.
Shopping by appointment
According to the GZA, about 70,000 people in Belgium are diagnosed with cancer each year, with 14,000 of them already experiencing financial troubles when they receive the diagnosis.
“During the course of their illness, this figure increases to a staggering 30,000,” they said in a statement. “That means almost half of the patients experience poverty at some point.”
It’s a great feeling to be able to take something beautiful from Huis Klaas without having to feel guilty
Joke Van Immissen, who is currently recovering from breast cancer, said the disease had also affected her financial breathing space.
“After a while you can only pay the essential bills; buying new clothes is not an option any more, even though you’ve studied and worked hard to be able to afford these things,” she says. “It’s a great feeling to be able to take something beautiful from Huis Klaas without having to feel guilty.”
Personal experience
Van Immissen also praises the individual approach at Huis Klaas. Patients come by appointment so they can look around in peace and speak privately with the volunteers, who also have experience of cancer, either personally or professionally.
“You know nobody will look at you in a strange way because you show signs of cancer treatment,” says Van Immissen.
One of those volunteers, Charissa Vermeersch, knows first-hand what impact the disease has, as she’s currently going through experimental treatment for ovarian cancer at the University Hospital of Leuven.
When they arrive for the first time, you notice that they struggle to feel comfortable, but that quickly passes
After three years of working at a large insurance company, her contract will not be renewed in July, meaning she will have to look for a new job.
“They, of course, didn’t tell me to my face that the reason my contract was not being extended is because I’m sick and will cost them more, but you know that is the reason,” says Vermeersch.
Patients find out about Huis Klaas through the care providers in the hospital, who put them in contact with the volunteers. “When they arrive for the first time, you notice that they struggle to feel comfortable, but that quickly passes,” says volunteer Mieke Meukens, who has a sister with a history of cancer. “People also take a limited number of things with them – nobody is taking advantage of this charity.”
Expansion plans
People can keep coming after their treatments have finished, as “financial troubles don’t just disappear” after it’s over, says Meukens. “As I’ve heard from my sister, it’s very hard to find a job after having cancer,” she says.
Van Immissen agrees, adding: “When I was applying for new jobs, I always told them about my cancer history at the end of the interview, because I know it plays a big role,” she says.
While Huis Klaas currently only offers material support, there are plans to expand its services to possibly include space for yoga and mindfulness workshops, support group meetings, and nail and hair care sessions. There is also hope it could extend to patients suffering from other diseases at other hospitals.
“It would be fantastic if it became a general centre with information on all kinds of practical problems. For example, the physical discomforts, like losing your nails after treatment,” says Van Immissen, who adds that “too often you have to find solutions on your own”.
The Huis Klaas team has submitted funding requests to the Foundation Against Cancer and the Support Fund of GZA Hospitals. If approved, the budget would be used to pay a project co-ordinator and invest in coaching and training for volunteers. The team may also seek subsidies from the Flemish government.
Photo courtesy Huis Klaas
