“My motivation stems from the incredible support my family received during my wife’s breast cancer journey. It’s not just about easing the patient’s experience, but also providing a listening ear to family members too.” Paul – Volunteer with Primrose Hospice.

Today we want to invite you to learn a little more about our incredible volunteers who help Primrose Hospice & Family Support Centre provide tailored care and support to over 1,400 patients and families every single year.

We simply wouldn’t be able to provide our range of support without our ‘Primrose People’, including each and every volunteer who gives their time freely to help others.

Watch or read below to meet Paul, an integral member of our team.

Hello! I’m Paul, I joined Primrose Hospice as a volunteer around two years ago, after my wife Mel was supported at Primrose Hospice on her breast cancer journey, before she sadly died.

The team at Primrose provided individualised support for both Mel and my family. The fantastic support they gave guided us through what was an incredibly difficult time for us.

The reason I wanted to volunteer was because I really wanted to help and make a difference to patients. I had seen the enjoyment that Mel had got from attending sessions at Primrose. This was the ideal opportunity for me to offer my humble life experience and time to help. It’s not just about easing the patient’s experience, but also providing a listening ear to family members too.

Can you tell us about what you do at Primrose Hospice?

A typical day of volunteering for me starts on a Thursday morning where I help staff and other volunteers get everything ready for a Day Hospice session.

I then welcome patients, make sure they’ve got a warm cuppa and a biscuit then spend the rest of the morning ensuring they have what they need throughout the session, before they sit down for a delicious home-cooked lunch.

The Clinical Team here are truly wonderful. They provide wraparound personalised support for not only the patient but also their carers and families.

Primrose is unique as the people we support here are able to build a trusting relationship with staff and volunteers as they see the same people every time they visit us.

It’s a real privilege to be a volunteer and to be part of patients’ lives at such a vulnerable and most difficult time of their life. It’s so rewarding that you can actually be connected and be part of that journey and make it a bit better for them.

Along with our team we help them navigate their journey and put them at ease which makes me feel like I’m doing something worthwhile. It’s amazing to hear their life stories and I learn a lot from them!

There was a gentleman who came to Primrose, and at first he didn’t engage at all with clinical staff or myself and other volunteers. So we worked to really put him at ease and the clinical team ensured he was given the right support. Fast forward about three weeks when he came in, he was more open with everyone, and I think, we really helped him overcome those first concerns about attending a hospice, which I think he was quite unnerved about.

What’s your most memorable moment from volunteering at Primrose?

There are lots of lovely moments, but one that sticks with me is when I first started volunteering at Primrose. I was aware of the high level of quality care being delivered and one of the nursing staff actually said to me she thought I was an undercover CQC inspector! Which as you can imagine made me laugh and we haven’t stopped laughing since.

Why do you think our community needs Primrose Hospice?

I think Primrose is rare because we know we can’t cure the life-limiting illnesses our patients are living with, but what we can do is help them lead a more fulfilling life. Primrose will quite often become a real life-line for people. They rely on attending various support sessions and it also provides vital respite time for carers who are looking after their loved ones.

Our team communicate with local healthcare professionals, which means our patients and families who we support receive the best possible care they can.

Driving home after a volunteer session gives me a sense of enormous wellbeing in the feeling that the volunteer team have made patients smile, laugh and feel comfortable in our great Hospice environment.

What other roles are there at Primrose?

As well as volunteering in Day Hospice, I also support the fundraising team at some of their fantastic fundraising events throughout the year. I will go along to events with my son, everything from Orchardfest to Treecycle, the list is endless.

I love going to these events, not only to help raise funds for a brilliant charity, but also to engage with members of the public as there can be misconceptions about hospices.

There are so many roles you can get involved with, so please do consider joining me as a volunteer for Primrose Hospice, you won’t regret it!

If you’d like to find out more about volunteering with Primrose Hospice, click here or contact Jo, our Volunteers’ Manager:

01527 871051