First Day as a New Volunteer

At around 3:00pm today, I made my way onto the hospital grounds I’d be volunteering in for the first time. My shift would start at 4:00pm and finish at 6:00pm, but I was in a little earlier because I had a little paperwork to do beforehand. It turns out, that by the grace of God, I've managed to secure an Internship post for six weeks, and in the final stages of recruitment I had to fill out some forms and bring in the relevant documents before my start date the 17^th of August. (I’ll discuss my internship in a later post)

As I enter my ward, I'm looking for my Line Manager. She’s offering to show me around once more but I’m willing to get stuck in and figure things out myself. I previously visited the ward the week prior during my induction and had to take in just how big the ward actually is compared to the one at the previous hospital I volunteer in. There’s 36 beds, the majority being single roomed to ensure maximum comfort and privacy for the patients.

I spent the first half an hour getting to know all the nurses and allied staff, who were very welcoming! As it was in the middle of a mealtime, I helped out taking orders and giving out meals to all the patients, whilst getting to know the catering staff and finding out what their day to day schedules were like. I was also entrusted with collecting a prescription from the ward below, and when I’d got back with the medicine in my hand, the line manager was impressed I’d got an entire bottle. It probably didn’t mean anything to anyone else, but to me I felt trust and rapport was being built between myself and my manager at that point.

Following the lunch round and tidying up the used trays, I then decided to help the nurses on a tea and coffee round. I think I spoilt the patients a little, by offering biscuits and cake whenever I had the chance!

After that I sat down next to one of patients and really got to know his story. He’d been on the waiting list for a double transplant, and was a regular face on the ward. I loved how he introduced me to the patients opposite his bedside, and I appreciated the little friendship that had just grown between these three patients and myself. The second patient was also on the waiting list for a transplant; they'd been born with a genetic mutation that had translated into a debilitating condition which had sped up the aging process of this liver, so this middle aged patient unfortunately possessed a liver which could have belonged to a 100 year old. As for the third patient, they asked me how old I thought they were, and I replied middle twenties? They were actually ten years older, but because their incredibly thin, 6 stone frame, I underestimated their true age.

The first patient had told me he’d deactivated his Facebook in case he wouldn’t make it. By the end of us getting to know each other and listening to each and every one of their stories, including me sharing my own story, all three had exchanged names and the first patient had said he’d reactivate his Facebook account as soon as he’d get home. That day I’d felt I really did achieve something as a volunteer, it probably wasn’t something tangible, but within myself I felt a sense of understanding and ease in the presence of these patients. They were just people, often with hard struggles and suffering who could potentially feel a little bit better if someone listened.

Thanks for reading.