How did we do?Helping to sustain andgrow King’s VolunteersThis year we took our support for King’s Volunteers even further,working in partnership with King's to strengthen this team that makessuch a difference to people's hospital experience.We have committed £200,000 of new funding over thenext two years to support King’s Volunteers to expandand strengthen their role right at the heart of King’shospitals.During 2022/23, an incredible 1,503 King’s volunteerscontributed 70,006 hours to help make people feelmore comfortable and relaxed in hospital. We werethrilled to see this contribution recognised at the King’sStars Awards where the team picked up the Chairman'sAward."The support we receive from the Charity enables us toincrease the reach of our volunteers across King's, whichresults in the service being able to support even morepatients," explains Luke Palmer, Patient Experienceand Involvement Lead at the Trust. "It has also given usthe opportunity to innovate and develop new services inresponse to feedback we receive from our patients."Reflecting Kings' diversityThanks to the funding we secured last year from theDepartment for Culture, Media and Sport andNHS Charities Together through the Volunteer FuturesFund, we are now able to support more young peoplefrom local schools to overcome barriers that canprevent them from getting involved and reaping therewards of volunteering.With a wide cross-section of volunteers from all overLondon and Kent, King's wanted to increase thenumber of opportunities available, especiallyfor young people interested in a career inhealthcare unaware of the opportunitiesopen to them. The team thereforefocused on students workingtowards a BTEC qualificationin Health and Social Care whichis a less conventional routeinto a career in healthcare.12S U P P O R T K I N G S .O R G .U KTheir Youth Engagement Coordinator works withteachers and work experience coordinators to identifyand refer young people and provide pastoral care forthose who would most benefit from volunteering toimprove their skills and confidence.Helping to alleviate boredom and isolationLong stays in hospital can lead to increased patientboredom and anxiety, exacerbating what is already astressful experience. Our previous investment in thepatient entertainment portal, a digital space wherepatients can access digitised magazines, games, radioand TV channels, and more, has been widely used bythousands of patients across King's hospitals.While young volunteers take on a variety of roles,they play a particularly vital part in distributingthe patient entertainment system andsupporting people to use it.1,500devices loanedLong-term patient Joan Scott explainsthe difference entertainment is making:“I’ve been in hospital for months with severe emphysema.My parents come to visit most days and take me out ina wheelchair every week, but it can feel really hard tobe stuck inside. It hurts my eyes to watch anything onmy small phone screen, so being able to borrow a tabletwith a big screen and easy access to Freeview makes theboredom so much more manageable.”
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