Home Artificial Nutrition (HAN) Awareness Week is an annual opportunity to highlight the thousands of adults and children in the UK who rely on artificial nutrition at home. Whether through oral nutrition support (e.g. nutritional drinks), enteral nutrition (tube feeding) or parenteral nutrition (intravenous feeding), HAN helps people stay nourished and well enough to live their lives beyond hospital.
 
HAN is a life-saving, life-changing treatment, yet it remains largely unrecognised. People may not realise it is a treatment at all, and when they notice tubes or equipment, assumptions can be wrong. Many people only hear about HAN when they or someone they love needs it. This week aims to change that by raising awareness, challenging stigma and celebrating the resilience of the HAN community.

What is Home Artificial Nutrition?
  

Home Artificial Nutrition provides essential nutrition when eating and drinking normally is not possible or not safe. It includes:

• Oral Nutrition Support (ONS) – nutritional drinks, powders or supplements used when a person can eat but cannot meet their needs through food alone. It may be used on its own or alongside other nutrition support.
• Enteral Nutrition (EN) – liquid feed delivered through a tube into the stomach or small bowel (intestine).
• Parenteral Nutrition (PN) – nutrition and fluids delivered directly into the bloodstream via a central venous catheter (parenteral support).     

People may need HAN due to intestinal failure,  Crohn’s disease, gastroparesis, cancer, severe malabsorption, surgical complications, neurological conditions or stroke, among  others. For some, HAN is short term; for others, it may be longer term or lifelong.
 
What unites everyone on HAN is this: it is not a choice – it is a lifeline. 

• #HANWeek #Seen #Unseen #SupportItAll #HPS #HEN #ONS #SupportingHANWeek 

• ​Please include us in social posts @PINNTcharity