LET'S GIVE OUR HOSPITALS A HELPING HAND
Mail calls for volunteer army to transform NHS
THE DAILY Mail today launches a major campaign to recruit thousands of NHS volunteers.
We are asking our readers to find time to help patients and take pressure off frontline staff. Vital hospital roles include mentoring patients, providing friendship and even being a blood courier.
The recruitment drive – the biggest in Britain since the 2012 Olympics and backed by health unions – is a partnership between the Mail and the charity Helpforce.
Those signing up for the
Christmas appeal will be asked to pledge as little as a day a month, or three hours a week, for a minimum of six months.
Dozens of hospitals have signed up and are ready to welcome new volunteers.
An estimated 78,000 volunteers already contribute to the NHS, yet the growing complexities of delivering health and social care for an ageing population mean the need for help is greater than ever.
Hospital consultations have doubled in a decade – from 11million in 2008/9 to more than 20million last year.
Only yesterday, a report identified a sharp rise in emergency admissions, while there are more than 100,000 staff vacancies in the service.
This puts frontline staff under immense pressure, creating the need for volunteers to step in with practical support and a helping hand.
Prospective volunteers can register their interest by filling out a simple form online. They will be matched with an NHS trust, with placements running from the spring, depending on availability and subject to the necessary checks.
Volunteer roles could include befriending patients, collecting prescriptions and even running singing groups. Others may use their own experiences of cancer or mental health to comfort others.
Surplus volunteers could be referred to charities such as Marie Curie and the British Red Cross.
Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, said: ‘From organising blood donor sessions in 1948, to helping ambulance first responders as the NHS turned 70 this summer, volunteers have always been at the heart of the NHS.
‘Today, tens of thousands of people give up their time in more than 300 different volunteer roles, supporting our patients and freeing NHS staff to focus on highly skilled treatment and care.
‘As we finalise the plan for the long-term future of the NHS, the Daily Mail and Helpforce should be congratulated for encouraging more people to take action as health volunteers, while also raising the profile of the thousands of unsung heroes who already play a crucial role in the best healthcare team in the world.’
Sir Thomas Hughes-Hallett, founder of Helpforce, said the recruitment campaign was the biggest ever for NHS volunteers. He added: ‘NHS staff deliver brilliant care, but we know that both the system and our frontline teams are under intense pressure.
‘Volunteering is good for the people being supported, health and social care services, charities, the volunteers themselves and the community as whole. We want to help use the power of volunteering to bring benefits for everyone involved and ensure that the NHS is ready for the future.’
Chris Hopson of NHS Providers, which represents hospitals and ambulance trusts, said: ‘Every volunteer, no matter what they do, can provide valuable support to an NHS that the public describe as the institution that makes them most proud to be British.
‘As we have seen in many trusts, dedication from volunteers works for everyone – it’s good for patients, good for staff, and good for the volunteers themselves.
‘This is a welcome initiative from Helpforce and it’s particularly good to see it supported by the Daily Mail.’
The campaign is also backed by the Royal College of Nursing and Unison.
Rachel Power of the Patients Association said: ‘Patients and the public treasure the NHS, and want to help this national institution through the significant challenges it’s experiencing. One way to do that is to get involved in volunteering.’