Support your local NHS trust to deliver outstanding care to patients and their families

We believe in enhancing patient experience and adding value to services. People are at the heart of the organisation's volunteer service - providing invaluable support to staff and assisting the Trust to provide first-class care to patients, carers and visitors within our hospitals and communities.

During 2020/21, we had over 100 dedicated volunteers, who went above and beyond to contribute a staggering 13,500 hours. This huge input enabled our organisation to continue to deliver a high standard of patient care despite COVID-19 pressures and challenges.

The contributions included;

• Meeting and greeting hospital visitors - providing a friendly face to welcome, direct and reassure patients and relatives, and supporting infection prevention and control measures by reminding people to wear masks, use hand gels and follow the one way system.
• Supporting the Vaccination Hubs at Stratford and Warwick 7 days a week including evenings - over 14,900 vaccinations administered at Warwick alone.
• Working with Kissing it Better charity to bring generations together and end isolation in old age.
• Warwickshire 4x4 Volunteers providing transport for staff during snowy weather, collecting and distributing PPE and medical equipment, delivering belongings to bereaved families, and picking up bloods and prescriptions. The group have completed 1,000 tasks for the Trust.
• Supporting quicker discharges by delivering around 300 TTOs (tablets taken out) prescriptions per month to the wards.
• Making welfare calls to people recently discharged from Warwick Hospital.
• League of Friends raising funds to support patients and staff.
• Connecting patients with loved ones through the "Post4Patients" initiative when visitor restrictions were in place - over 500 messages from as far afield as New Zealand have been sent.
• Sprucing up Trust gardens for patients and staff to enjoy and take respite.
• Assembling 9,000 visors and making over 5,000 homemade face coverings, headbands and laundry bags.
• Providing support to families who have a child with a complex healthcare need and/or life limiting condition.
• The Chaplaincy Team made regular phone calls to contribute to the spiritual wellbeing of patients and staff.
• Supporting patients and their families at end of life - ensuring people don't feel alone.

Trust volunteers have been invaluable at a time when health and social care has had to adapt. The pandemic changed the way the NHS delivers care with technology being utilised to allow virtual appointments. It also has created increased demand for services. Subsequently, your local hospital and community services need your support more than ever to help maintain communication, ensure people are being treated in the right setting, receive medication quickly and help them feel supported and listened to. To read more about how volunteers play a vital role in enhancing patient care at South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust and how you can make a huge difference visit: www.swft.nhs.uk/join-us/volunteer.

Fiona Burton, Chief Nursing Officer at South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust, said: "We are extremely grateful to all our volunteers for offering their services to support our organisation over what has been one of the most challenging periods for the NHS. Their valued and essential contributions make a real difference to our patients and staff on a daily basis. Thank you to all the volunteers for everything you do to enhance the quality of care we provide at South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust."

Francine Docherty, Volunteer Services Lead at South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust, said: "Volunteers not only dedicate their time and energy but they also share their valuable skills and knowledge with us and the people they volunteer with. We aim to grow our Volunteering Service further over the next 12 months by offering a diverse range of opportunities. If you would like to make a difference by helping to further improve patient experience, and support your local NHS to continue to deliver outstanding care, while meeting new people, please email volunteering@swft.nhs.uk. We would love to hear from you."

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