Gateshead NHS says ‘thank you’ to volunteers

The NHS in Gateshead is saying a huge ‘thank you’ to its volunteers this week – and is urging people to get involved too if they’d like to support their local NHS.

Volunteer at Gateshead Health
Favour, a volunteer at Gateshead Health

To mark National Volunteers Week (1-7 June), Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust is celebrating the contribution and dedication of its volunteers, who work behind the scenes to support staff and help patients.

Volunteers carry out a wide variety of duties that are a crucial support for both patients and staff. From delivering medical records, or offering a friendly face and a chat, the contribution of volunteers is invaluable.

Watch the new video where volunteers explain why they volunteer for Gateshead Health and what they get out of it.

my daughter actually worked here first she’s worked her for two years and i’ve raised my two kids that 21 and 18 and i think it was time for me to get back into some sort of work. always wanted to do caring or work in a hospital and it was just something i asked about it and i didn’t even know they were still doing it and when i done it it was just the best thing ever i just rang up got a form filled it in and if it wasn’t for me daughter actually telling us about it i would never knew about that i was still doing it and that’s it from there.
my son is a nurse in the hospital and we were sitting having christmas lunch one day and i just retired from work i was about to retire from work and i was just discussing what we could do or what i could do with my life and he mentioned that the hospital was looking for volunteers
my wife decided that was a good idea get me out the house so um i did i applied to be a volunteer
and that’s what i do now and i thoroughly enjoy it and it gets me out of the house but i really enjoy what i do here um it’s it’s a new life after being retired
a friend whose works worked within the healthcare in sector she sort of suggested it would be a
good idea because i’m thinking of a career change and coming here i really enjoyed the staff are fantastic and helping the patients is very rewarding and there’s a lot of satisfaction in helping others
i help people and i’m happy to do that i help them give them a cup of tea chat with them i do that for them and i’m happy doing that it’s very very good to to help people give out what you want what you what you do and also it gave me experience for my job because it’s related to what i do in
my work as a support worker as a head carer so i care for them so i’m very very happy to volunteer
there it’s really good
best part of being a volunteer is helping people working as part of a team the other volunteers are fantastic we help each other the managers are brilliant the staff are great you ask them a question so everybody takes time to help you it’s a very positive atmosphere and there’s just a lot of satisfaction in helping other people oh i like chatting with people you know making them feel feel
comfortable giving them like a giving them hope for life at least activities you know doing activities
going out with them and it’s actually interacting with people and seeing people and saying that
little if you make a difference even just chatting for 10 minutes you go home and you sit i had a really good day today because i made that person smile and i just i like just it’s like a little family and you get you know a lot of people and you get to know a lot of things i didn’t know beforehand
it involves lots of duties such as collecting health records helping patients giving directions and taking caring medicine from the pharmacy to an outpatient department it’s really nice and lovely to have people over there you know you give them hope they have hope in life you know so it’s really nice volunteering giving time to them i would say please apply and it’s it’s great you’ll really enjoy it
it’s just all positive there’s i can’t think of any negatives i would just say if you really want to do it try it you can come in and you can shadow for a couple of you know weeks until you know if you want to do it and honestly you would it’s just so rewarding give it a go don’t like sit in the house and go
i’m looking down and just go it’s it’s really really good it’s very flexible and it’s very accommodating and it’s just very rewarding so try it i come here and i meet different people of different backgrounds different nationalities even um and it opens up what you’ve got to do with your life in retirement instead of just sitting in the chair and wondering what to do get up and do something
it’s very very good to volunteer giving out time to help other people it’s fantastic it’s lovely
good yeah i like it.

Judith Curry, patient experience and volunteer manager at Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Our volunteers are absolutely amazing and we cannot thank them enough for all the support they offer Gateshead NHS. They add value and enhance the experience for our patients, as well as providing a source of vital support to our staff.

“Volunteering is special because you offer your time and skills and, in return, you get the rewarding feeling of helping others. Whether you’re looking for work experience to add to your CV or you want to give something back to the community, we have the volunteering opportunity for you.”

If you’re interested in volunteering, please contact Judith Curry, patient experience and volunteer manager. Email [email protected] or telephone 0191 445 2343.