New year, new volunteering opportunities to help ease hospital pressures and improve patient experience

If volunteering is on your New Year’s resolution list, an exciting new role which will play an essential part in helping to ease pressures and improve patient experience at Worcestershire Royal Hospital could be just what the doctor ordered.

Discharge Response volunteers will provide a vital link between ward staff and pharmacy teams, helping speed up the discharge process for patients who are ready to leave hospital and go home – for example, by helping to ensure medication gets to the patient in a timely manner.

Janet Neate, Volunteer Manager at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “We know from other hospitals which have rolled out this volunteering role that it makes a huge difference in terms of making sure patients can get back home in a timely way, and therefore freeing up beds for those being admitted to hospital.

“The role would suit someone who is passionate about making a difference to patients and to supporting staff, and who is fit and well as you will do many steps during your shift!

“We are looking for volunteers to work across a small number of wards to start with, and we are hoping that, following an initial pilot period at Worcestershire Royal Hospital we will be able to expand the project across the Trust.”

Anna Sterckx, Head of Patient, Carer and Public Engagement added: “This is a new way of working for us and we are excited to be able to launch this new volunteering programme with the support of national charity Helpforce, and our Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Charity. We are ready to recruit and are looking forward to hearing from anyone who may be interested in this really rewarding role.”

Jacqueline Dobson is looking forward to starting her role as a Discharge Response Volunteer, having been a wayfinding volunteer at Worcestershire Royal Hospital for the last three years.

She said: “I am excited and looking forward to the challenge of this new role. Having been a nurse for 45 years I understand the importance of assisting and speeding up a patient’s discharge. For the staff there are many agencies to contact and appointments to be made so any support and help that a volunteer can give will be invaluable.

“Within the role I will be able to collect patients’ prescriptions, and support with practical things like packing their belongings, and reassuring and listening to them. This will enable the ward to relieve a member of staff who would otherwise had to stay with a patient until being fully discharged home.

“I find volunteering very rewarding – it makes me feel a continued useful member of society and that I am giving something back to the NHS.”

Discharge Response Volunteer roles are available Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm, You must be 18 or over to apply.

For more information on this exciting new role contact the volunteering team by visiting www.worcsacute.nhs.uk/volunteer, emailing wah-tr.volunteers@nhs.net or calling 01905 733159.