DOING GOOD FOR NURSE TRAINING
Bríd Hehir explains how she seeks out donors to fund nursing education projects in Africa and the UK I work as a fundraiser for the Do Good charity, the fundraising arm of Hospitaller Order of St John of God (SJOG), an international Catholic healthcare organisation working with some of society’s most vulnerable people in more than 300 hospitals and centres in 55 countries worldwide. Supported by lay staff, the order helps around one million people every year. My job as one of three fundraisers involves maintaining relationships with existing donors, and finding new funding organisations to support our work in the UK and 12 African countries. The charity supports specific projects such as nurse education and training in Sierra Leone and Malawi, and mental health and rehabilitation services in Zambia, Malawi and the UK. When I came to this job, my now manager was having trouble RESOURCES
NOTICE BOARD
Do Good Charity www.dogoodcharity.co.uk St John of God Hospitaller Services www.saintjohnofgod.org
recruiting through the usual channels. He asked his social network if they knew a suitable person. Someone did, and put us in touch. I met my manager, was impressed by his commitment and enthusiasm, and considered the position a welcome challenge.
My job encompasses elements of my previous experiences and interests – nursing in Africa, health visiting in London, and fundraising for political campaigns and NHS business management. This meant I was already familiar with the world of health and social care and with the needs of the people and communities that SJOG works with. During my induction, I visited
My working life My office is in the community home of four religious brothers who have worked all over the world in nursing and social care. Their advice and support is invaluable. My fundraising colleagues are in Dublin, Amsterdam and the UK. My Africa colleagues are lay and religious staff. In the UK, clients are people with learning disabilities and mental health problems and homeless people, chiefly from Eastern Europe. In Africa, clients are ordinary but poor people who lack access to affordable health services or education. In my working day I consider funding bids from services in Britain and Africa and think about whom I could approach for funding. Although most of my work relates to nurse education and training, I also raise funds for mental health, rehabilitation and child health services. Bríd (left) with nurse Dorah Munthali in Malawi
Whistleblowing review Sir Robert Francis QC has been asked to lead an independent review into whistleblowing in the NHS. Front line staff are being asked to speak up about their experiences. Separately, the Care Quality Commission is also looking at how it can use whistleblowing information in its inspections. The inspectorate says it will use data about the number of whistleblowing alerts about a trust to help decide when and where to inspect. The deadline for submissions to the Freedom to Speak Up review is September 10. Go to freedomtospeakup.org.uk/about/#involved Research course An introductory course on starting out in research will be held at the Department of Continuing
64 september 10 :: vol 29 no 2 :: 2014
Professional Development, Imperial College London on September 29-30, and on March 2-3 2015. The interval between modules gives students time to practise the skills taught in the first two days, develop a research question and formulate a proposal. Email [email protected] or visit tinyurl.com/researchskillsICL Free conference The RCN diversity unit will hold a free equalities conference called Building Better Partnerships: Generating Solutions to Workforce Inequalities on September 22 at RCN HQ, 20 Cavendish Square, W1G 0RN. Primarily for equality and diversity leads, union stewards and learning representatives, the event aims to share good practice in tackling NHS inequalities, to find solutions to workforce inequalities and to give participants techniques
NURSING STANDARD
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CAREERS
services in the UK and liked the way the organisation makes a reality of its values of compassion, hospitality, justice, respect and trust by caring for vulnerable people here and in Africa. I am proud to promote its longevity, and support for nurse education and training and services. But donor behaviour has changed: donations are increasingly one-offs rather than given regularly. We can no longer rely on a guaranteed income, and identifying new income sources is hard work. My greatest job satisfaction comes from receiving donations and explaining how the money is used in practice. It is nice to have reconfirmed what I have always believed – that people are innately decent. Getting two £1 coins taped to a handwritten note from a pensioner is as rewarding and memorable as receiving a cheque for £500. The personal touch is important and I strive to build relationships with people, but identifying donors to match projects takes time and getting good feedback about how the funds are spent can be another challenge. Sometimes it feels as though I have come full circle since I was a volunteer nurse in Ethiopia in the 1970s, although I – and the world – have changed a lot since then NS Bríd Hehir is development manager, Do Good Charity
Volunteer Lauren Morris now sees the world in a new light
Lessons abroad and at home In April 2013, I took a break from my hospital job and set off for the Philippines to help in rural medical clinics. I became interested in volunteering when I worked with disabled children before my nurse training. Volunteering abroad seemed a good way to travel and help a community in need alongside like-minded others. I signed up with overseas volunteering organisation Kaya and spent four months living with a family in the city of Tacloban and learning a great deal about the Filipino culture. I helped to deliver babies and treat people in remote communities with limited access to medical supplies. The biggest revelation to me was how much the clinic made of limited resources. On return to the UK, my most
Volunteer qualities Flexible – volunteers work in underresourced environments and need to be willing to help out wherever necessary, although you are never asked to perform procedures you are not trained for. Healthcare staff with specific skills can be matched to the correct project for their skills. Staff with experience of training may assist in designing and delivering workshops to local staff. Culturally sensitive – volunteers work in a very different culture from their own.
for arguing the benefits of the equality and inclusion agenda beyond legal compliance. Contact [email protected] Lone working Run by NHS Protect, the lone worker protection service advises on the latest technological developments in safe working, tips for keeping safe when working alone and offering support in partnership with organisations such as Victim Support. Keep Safe, the organisation’s newsletter, aims to raise awareness of lone working issues and to provide the latest information on the service. Go to tinyurl.com/KSLWPSNHS Nursing workforce NHS Employers is holding a free national event on Sustaining a Safe and Quality Nursing Workforce for senior nurses and workforce leaders on September 23 in Birmingham. The event is an opportunity to exchange
NURSING STANDARD
Lauren Morris with her Filipino colleagues
important lesson has been to value the NHS. After seeing how few resources clinics and hospitals have in developing countries and how grateful people are for the service despite the poor facilities, I gained an appreciation for the vast resources and wage levels associated with health in the UK Tacloban was all but destroyed by typhoon Haiyan in November 2013. With 80 per cent of the city destroyed and thousands killed, projects in Tacloban were put on hold. But now projects are up and running again and the need for support is greater than ever. Lauren Morris is a staff nurse at Solihull Hospital, Birmingham RESOURCES Kaya www.kayavolunteer.com VSO www.vso.org.uk
information on successful nursing workforce programmes and hear about practical solutions during workshop sessions. Speakers from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the Nursing and Midwifery Council will share their latest thinking on safe staffing and quality. Go to tinyurl. com/NHSEnursing-workforce Ebola outbreak British Red Cross is recruiting nurses and doctors in response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Clinical staff are required to work in Sierra Leone, including nurses experienced in working in acute care in a resource-poor setting, tropical medicine and in infectious disease control or emergency care. Ideally, people would be available for an immediate assignment of four weeks. Go to tinyurl.com/RedCrossEbolahelp for details. september 10 :: vol 29 no 2 :: 2014 65
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Bríd Hehir explains how she seeks out donors to fund nursing education projects in Africa and the UK I work as a fundraiser for the Do Good charity, the fundraising arm of Hospitaller Order of St John of God (SJOG), an international Catholic healthcare organisation working with some of society’s most vulnerable people in more than 300 hospitals and centres in 55 countries worldwide. Supported by lay staff, the order helps around one million people every year. My job as one of three fundraisers involves maintaining relationships with existing donors, and finding new funding organisations to support our work in the UK and 12 African countries. The charity supports specific projects such as nurse education and training in Sierra Leone and Malawi, and mental health and rehabilitation services in Zambia, Malawi and the UK. When I came to this job, my now manager was having trouble RESOURCES
NOTICE BOARD
Do Good Charity www.dogoodcharity.co.uk St John of God Hospitaller Services www.saintjohnofgod.org
recruiting through the usual channels. He asked his social network if they knew a suitable person. Someone did, and put us in touch. I met my manager, was impressed by his commitment and enthusiasm, and considered the position a welcome challenge.
My job encompasses elements of my previous experiences and interests – nursing in Africa, health visiting in London, and fundraising for political campaigns and NHS business management. This meant I was already familiar with the world of health and social care and with the needs of the people and communities that SJOG works with. During my induction, I visited
My working life My office is in the community home of four religious brothers who have worked all over the world in nursing and social care. Their advice and support is invaluable. My fundraising colleagues are in Dublin, Amsterdam and the UK. My Africa colleagues are lay and religious staff. In the UK, clients are people with learning disabilities and mental health problems and homeless people, chiefly from Eastern Europe. In Africa, clients are ordinary but poor people who lack access to affordable health services or education. In my working day I consider funding bids from services in Britain and Africa and think about whom I could approach for funding. Although most of my work relates to nurse education and training, I also raise funds for mental health, rehabilitation and child health services. Bríd (left) with nurse Dorah Munthali in Malawi
Whistleblowing review Sir Robert Francis QC has been asked to lead an independent review into whistleblowing in the NHS. Front line staff are being asked to speak up about their experiences. Separately, the Care Quality Commission is also looking at how it can use whistleblowing information in its inspections. The inspectorate says it will use data about the number of whistleblowing alerts about a trust to help decide when and where to inspect. The deadline for submissions to the Freedom to Speak Up review is September 10. Go to freedomtospeakup.org.uk/about/#involved Research course An introductory course on starting out in research will be held at the Department of Continuing
64 september 10 :: vol 29 no 2 :: 2014
Professional Development, Imperial College London on September 29-30, and on March 2-3 2015. The interval between modules gives students time to practise the skills taught in the first two days, develop a research question and formulate a proposal. Email [email protected] or visit tinyurl.com/researchskillsICL Free conference The RCN diversity unit will hold a free equalities conference called Building Better Partnerships: Generating Solutions to Workforce Inequalities on September 22 at RCN HQ, 20 Cavendish Square, W1G 0RN. Primarily for equality and diversity leads, union stewards and learning representatives, the event aims to share good practice in tackling NHS inequalities, to find solutions to workforce inequalities and to give participants techniques
NURSING STANDARD
Downloaded from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Jul 04, 2016. For personal use only. No other uses without permission. Copyright © 2016 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
CAREERS
services in the UK and liked the way the organisation makes a reality of its values of compassion, hospitality, justice, respect and trust by caring for vulnerable people here and in Africa. I am proud to promote its longevity, and support for nurse education and training and services. But donor behaviour has changed: donations are increasingly one-offs rather than given regularly. We can no longer rely on a guaranteed income, and identifying new income sources is hard work. My greatest job satisfaction comes from receiving donations and explaining how the money is used in practice. It is nice to have reconfirmed what I have always believed – that people are innately decent. Getting two £1 coins taped to a handwritten note from a pensioner is as rewarding and memorable as receiving a cheque for £500. The personal touch is important and I strive to build relationships with people, but identifying donors to match projects takes time and getting good feedback about how the funds are spent can be another challenge. Sometimes it feels as though I have come full circle since I was a volunteer nurse in Ethiopia in the 1970s, although I – and the world – have changed a lot since then NS Bríd Hehir is development manager, Do Good Charity
Volunteer Lauren Morris now sees the world in a new light
Lessons abroad and at home In April 2013, I took a break from my hospital job and set off for the Philippines to help in rural medical clinics. I became interested in volunteering when I worked with disabled children before my nurse training. Volunteering abroad seemed a good way to travel and help a community in need alongside like-minded others. I signed up with overseas volunteering organisation Kaya and spent four months living with a family in the city of Tacloban and learning a great deal about the Filipino culture. I helped to deliver babies and treat people in remote communities with limited access to medical supplies. The biggest revelation to me was how much the clinic made of limited resources. On return to the UK, my most
Volunteer qualities Flexible – volunteers work in underresourced environments and need to be willing to help out wherever necessary, although you are never asked to perform procedures you are not trained for. Healthcare staff with specific skills can be matched to the correct project for their skills. Staff with experience of training may assist in designing and delivering workshops to local staff. Culturally sensitive – volunteers work in a very different culture from their own.
for arguing the benefits of the equality and inclusion agenda beyond legal compliance. Contact [email protected] Lone working Run by NHS Protect, the lone worker protection service advises on the latest technological developments in safe working, tips for keeping safe when working alone and offering support in partnership with organisations such as Victim Support. Keep Safe, the organisation’s newsletter, aims to raise awareness of lone working issues and to provide the latest information on the service. Go to tinyurl.com/KSLWPSNHS Nursing workforce NHS Employers is holding a free national event on Sustaining a Safe and Quality Nursing Workforce for senior nurses and workforce leaders on September 23 in Birmingham. The event is an opportunity to exchange
NURSING STANDARD
Lauren Morris with her Filipino colleagues
important lesson has been to value the NHS. After seeing how few resources clinics and hospitals have in developing countries and how grateful people are for the service despite the poor facilities, I gained an appreciation for the vast resources and wage levels associated with health in the UK Tacloban was all but destroyed by typhoon Haiyan in November 2013. With 80 per cent of the city destroyed and thousands killed, projects in Tacloban were put on hold. But now projects are up and running again and the need for support is greater than ever. Lauren Morris is a staff nurse at Solihull Hospital, Birmingham RESOURCES Kaya www.kayavolunteer.com VSO www.vso.org.uk
information on successful nursing workforce programmes and hear about practical solutions during workshop sessions. Speakers from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the Nursing and Midwifery Council will share their latest thinking on safe staffing and quality. Go to tinyurl. com/NHSEnursing-workforce Ebola outbreak British Red Cross is recruiting nurses and doctors in response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Clinical staff are required to work in Sierra Leone, including nurses experienced in working in acute care in a resource-poor setting, tropical medicine and in infectious disease control or emergency care. Ideally, people would be available for an immediate assignment of four weeks. Go to tinyurl.com/RedCrossEbolahelp for details. september 10 :: vol 29 no 2 :: 2014 65
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