Sandra recently spoke with Remi Livesey, 18, regarding his two years volunteering for East Cheshire NHS Trust at Macclesfield Hospital.
Remi talked about some of the highs, and lows, of ward volunteering and how this has helped shape his aspirations for the future.
S: What inspired you to volunteer for the NHS?
R: It was a mix of different reasons. Covid really publicised how volunteering could help the NHS, I want to be a doctor so it got me thinking about what can I actually do to help now.
It also gave me the opportunity to experience the hospital environment to help me decide if medicine really was the career for me.
S: Have you done other volunteering?
R: For the Duke Of Edinburgh Bronze Award I volunteered through the Community Action Program at my school, things like fund raising for different charities, helping at food banks and raising awareness on environmental topics.
Alongside my hospital volunteering I also volunteer for Knutsford First Responders. I help out with the First Aid courses they run, simulating a patient, answering questions, demonstrating and supporting training on the resuscitation dummy, helping to train how to put someone into the recovery position, those kind of things.
S: What is your favourite volunteering moment?
R: It was just a small thing but it’s really memorable and had a huge impact on me.
There was a patient receiving palliative care and they wanted an ice cream that reminded them of their childhood. I was asked to go out shopping to find the ice cream. It wasn’t anything big but it has stayed with me as I had the opportunity to help someone at that moment. Small acts can really matter.
S: Do you have a toughest volunteering moment?
R: It can be tough sometimes, when patients are confused and I’m a stranger to them.
One day a patient asked me the football score for a particular game, I didn’t know it but looked up the result on line. His team had lost and he got really annoyed about it and told me to leave!
I like to make them happier!
S: What do you feel the impact of volunteering has been?
R: On a day to day basis we can help the staff with certain tasks to reduce their workload a bit. Things like giving out meals, answering queries and running errands.
Patients often don’t want to ask the staff for help with minor requests, they can see how busy the staff are too, things like charge their mobile phones, reach something for them, but I can do that.
Having time to speak to the patients and talking about their memories makes a difference to their experience and leaves them in a happier mood.
S: What would you say to someone thinking about volunteering?
R: Do it!
There is so much to gain, you learn about others and yourself, gain confidence, develop interpersonal skills. You get to interact with so many people and gain perception on how to best help.
It’s an amazing experience, I feel good about helping people. When a patient says “that conversation made my day” it’s very fulfilling. People in hospital often feel vulnerable and it’s a stressful time, to make a difference feels good and meaningful.
We also get to meet some amazing people, volunteers, staff, patients, you hear some interesting life stories.
S: Is there anything you would change or improve about volunteering?
R: It’s been better volunteering on weekdays than weekends as there’s more to do.
S: What do you do outside volunteering?
R: I’ve been at school and just finished my A-Levels this summer.
I enjoy athletics and compete in javelin competitions, medicine is my main focus but I’d like to continue with the javelin if I can. I’ve recently been to watch the Paralympics in Paris with my family.
My school has a sister school in The Gambia and we got to go there, see their culture, exchanging knowledge and experiences.
S: You’ve been shortlisted for the NHS Parliamentary Awards 2024! How do you feel about that?
R:Very excited and happy! It was such a surprise to be shortlisted, I was over the moon just to be nominated in the first place, for someone to think of me and validating that I’d made a difference.
It feels a bit weird, there are so many amazing volunteers, I’m just one small piece of a very large puzzle. I am extremely honored to be short listed, it’s great to be able to show case volunteering at East Cheshire NHS Trust. I’m just lucky it’s me, it could easily be anyone else here.
S: So what’s next?
R: I’m really happy with my A-Level results and they’ve got me into my first choice university, Cambridge, to study medicine, although I’d be happy with any of the universities I applied to.
S: How do you think volunteering has assisted you?
It was great for my university application. The experience on the wards has helped me be confident in my choice of medicine to start with.
It’s just different to work experience, which I also did as much as I could sign up to. On the wards as a volunteer, you get to see what real patient interaction is like, it’s another perspective. It helps you realise how important individual patient care is, develop empathy, awareness and compassion. I appreciate everything I may be able to do to help improve the experience and outcome for a patient, I hope it will make me a better doctor and person.
S: Anything to add?
R: I’m really grateful for the opportunity to volunteer. The experience has been invaluable in so many ways and it has been an amazing time. Thank you.
Of course, we wish Remi all the very best for his future and are so glad that he’s enjoyed his volunteering experience. We will watch for the results of the NHS Parliamentary Awards with great anticipation, but just to get there is a phenomenal achievement.
Well done and thank you Remi.
