Volunteers Head Into North East Wales Community to Inform and Support Those with Life Limiting Illness

A BAND of volunteers are heading into communities across North East Wales and the borderlands to inform and support patients and loved ones of those who have life-limiting illnesses.

Nightingale House Hospice has upskilled and trained a number of its’ volunteers to go out into the community offering information and support about the services it has on offer.

The Nightingale House Info Points wer unveiled at the hospice’s flagship store in Regent Street from Tuesday, 11 May – Thursday 13, May.

The purpose of the Info Points is to help those who have been diagnosed with a life-limiting condition including cancer, heart failure and Motor Neurone Disease, and tell them more about how they can be cared for by the hospice and the services available to them.

The ambassadorial volunteers have previously undertaken a number of volunteer roles within the hospice and are already familiar with the services on offer. But now the new scheme has gone one step further by training them on the clinical and support services that patients and their loved ones could access.

All the services at Nightingale House aim to support people either during an extremely uncertain time, during and after treatment or when there are no more treatments available. Help, support and therapies are available for when life becomes more difficult and less enjoyable.

Volunteer Manager Jo Kearns said: “We have gathered together a very loyal and knowledgeable group of volunteers to help us develop the new Info Points service and help us reach out into our communities, offering information and support and letting people know about our services but more importantly how they can access them.

“People are generally referred to the hospice by their key health care professional such as their Specialist Nurse or GP but patients or their loved ones can also make a direct referral to us just by picking up the phone and these direct calls often result in them accessing our wide range of services including our in-patient unit.”

Nightingale House Info Point Volunteer, Kevin Jones said: “I have been involved with the hospice for a number of years and I believe this opportunity for us to go out into the community and tell people about the amazing services that can help them better manage their illness or support them and their carers’ in other ways, such as spiritual, emotional or psychological support is so important.

“We want to go out there and tell people that the hospice is not just a place where you go to die but a vibrant, caring and supportive environment where the team throw their arms around you and give you the support you need, when you need it most. Nightingale House mostly relies on fundraising and charitable donations to keep it running and the more we can highlight the services available the better for all concerned,” added Kevin.

The Info Points will be moving around the catchment area as new locations are identified over the coming months. If you have a public space and think it would be a great place for our volunteers to locate for a couple of hours each month then please get in touch with Jo Kearns, Volunteer Manager, Nightingale House Hospice on 01978 316800.