‘It’s non-stop here every day but very fulfilling’
SUNFLOWER centre manager Sandra Jones says there’s one phrase she hears over and over again in her job: “I wish I’d come here sooner.”
She said: “Getting people to come through the doors is the biggest problem but once they do, they really appreciate what we do here.”
Born in Manchester, Sandra began her nursing career at Macclesfield District Hospital and later moved to work on the clinical research team at AstraZeneca.
She was part of the team which worked on the lung cancer drug Iressa and later moved to The Christie Hospital, working with patients willing to try out new medicines and drugs.
“My work was all about collecting good quality data and handling patients’ expectations,” she said.
“I enjoyed it but also love my front-facing work with everyone at the Sunflower Centre.”
Sandra runs a team of 14 staff at the centre and a band of about 30 volunteers a week.
“It’s non-stop here every day of the week – but very fulfilling,” she said.
“If I can be there for someone to confide in and hopefully make a difference then I think I’m very privileged to be in that person’s life at such a difficult time.”
Sandra and her team are always on the look-out for new volunteers. Anyone who would like to find out more should contact staff at the centre on 01625 610364.