THANKS A MILLION!
AS VOLUNTEERS PLEDGE AN ASTONISHING 1,000,000 HOURS OF HELP FOR NHS IN DAILY MAIL’S CAMPAIGN...
INCREDIBLE Daily Mail readers have pledged more than a million hours of voluntary service to the NHS in just five days.
The number offering their time to help patients and relieve the strain on doctors and nurses surpassed 17,500 last night.
The generous pledges comprise 10,282 who have chosen to volunteer for three hours a week plus a further 7,253 who said they will give a day a month for the cause.
It means that the major volunteer recruitment drive – the biggest since the London 2012 Olympics – is set to boost the health service’s volunteering force by at least a fifth. The Mail’s campaign, in partnership with the charity Helpforce, aims to fill important roles such as providing friendship, transport services and cancer counselling.
The campaign has received the backing of the Prime Minister, Labour, the Liberal Democrats, Scotland’s main political parties and leading health unions, who have hailed the incredible response of the public.
Last night, NHS Improvement added to the growing voices backing the recruitment drive. The watchdog’s chairman, Baroness Dido Harding, said she knew firsthand how challenging and rewarding volunteering can be.
She recently spent a day at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London running errands on behalf of doctors, nurses and patients. She recounted: ‘I spent the day running errands across the hospital, collecting medication for patients and helping them get ready to leave.
‘It was a huge privilege to see up close what the NHS does, how hard our NHS staff work and to play a small part in making it easier for them to do their jobs. I walked over 25,000 steps and finished the day with a large smile on my face and a sense of satisfaction that I had helped make some patients’ and staff’s day a bit better.
‘Volunteers are not a substitute for having appropriately trained and qualified staff but they can bring compassion, time and a unique perspective that complements the brilliance of those on the frontline. And everyone benefits, including, as I found, the volunteers themselves.’
Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, has said boosting volunteers will be essential for the NHS to deliver ambitious upgrades to diagnosis and treatment, urging the public to ‘heed the call’.
The campaign has also won the hearts of stars such as Sir Tom Jones, Sir Cliff Richard, Joanna Lumley, Kate Garraway, Simon Cowell and Davina McCall.
Sporting greats including Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes, Frankie Dettori and Bryan Robson are backing our Christmas appeal. The recruitment drive, taking place throughout December, is asking readers to register their interest by filling out a form online.
Those who pledge will then be matched with a trust near to them, before taking on roles for a minimum of six months. Volunteers will not replace doctors and nurses, but can carry out simple tasks to help patients.
Sir Thomas Hughes- Hallett, founder of Helpforce, described the response as ‘phenomenal’.
He said: ‘It is only day five and already Daily Mail readers have pledged a million hours to support staff and patients in the NHS.
‘The phenomenal response so proves that people want to give back, they want to roll their sleeves up and get stuck in. The wave continues to build and we at Helpforce are so proud of every single person who has pledged so far.’
Today, there are an estimated 78,000 volunteers making vital contributions to the health service. Yet demand on the NHS is rising year- on-year, fuelled by the ageing population and advances in diagnosis and treatment.
Health bosses have confirmed the NHS is putting volunteering at the heart of its long term plan, aiming to recruit tens of thousands of new helpers.
‘Sense of satisfaction’ ‘Roll up their sleeves and get stuck in’