Turas Le Cheile was established in the year 2001 following a number of tragic deaths in the North Kildare / South Meath area. The service is a Voluntary service, confidential and free of charge to individuals and families who have been bereaved including those bereaved by suicide. All personnel are trained in generic bereavement support and bereavement support specific to suicide. As time evolved the needs of people seeking a service changed and Turas le Cheile had to respond in order to provide the most appropriate service. This resulted in all personnel being equipped with skills to provide interventions with people who were in crisis and thinking of taking there own life (ASIST – Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training). The group also completed the Living Links programme which supported the previous skills and enhanced their confidence in providing support to families in the immediate aftermath of a tragic death. A need then arose for services specific to younger people and children and training was provided in the Therapeutic work with children – Power of Play and also Children and Loss programme.
From a Turas Le Cheile perspective at this point it was felt that there was a gap in service provision for whole communities who needed support in the aftermath of a tragic event so the group trained in CISD (Critical Incident Stress Defusing). This skill allows Turas Le Cheile to work in a supportive role with other statutory & voluntary agencies in the immediate and medium aftermath of tragic events in a community. Turas le Cheile is also a member of the Critical Incident Stress Management Network of Ireland and as such the volunteers are available as a resource to the network to support frontline responders.
In 2010, responding to demand, personnel completed an intensive training programme on establishing and managing group support for people bereaved. There are currently 32 support personnel with Turas Le Cheile.
The continued ethos of the organisation is to grow and develop in response to community needs. In order to achieve this, training is ongoing and mandatory for all its personnel. Supervision is pivotal to the maintenance of professional service delivery and self-care.
The policy documents are revised and updated regularly. The service is 100% voluntary with no paid personnel. Our main source of funding is through Church Gate Collections, St. Brigids Crosses and lottery application for specific training.
Turas Le Cheile operates on a Monday to Friday basis and is contactable by phoning 086 0566819 from 9am to 5pm. The contactor will review the Individual or family needs and a support person or persons will be assigned. There is no waiting list.
Summary of services:
- Generic Bereavement Support to individuals and families.
- Suicide / tragic death bereavement Support to individuals and families.
- Support to families in the aftermath of a tragic event.
- Intervention service (ASIST).
- CISD – (Critical Incident Stress Debriefing) to whole communities e.g. schools, parents, clubs, teachers etc.
- Group Support (January 2011).
Important Links
Child Welfare and Protection Policy