East Dorset Retired & Senior Volunteer Programme
The doctors and nurses at the Rosemary Medical Centre know how quickly the quality of an elderly person’s life can deteriorate through frailty or disability and how frustrating it can be when simple tasks – or just getting about – become a struggle. We are also aware of how lonely and isolated people who live alone can become and what a detrimental effect this can have on their health. So the practice along with the assistance of The Friends will help to provide some basic support for less able patients.
The Friends are all unpaid volunteers with the charity RSVP which is a national volunteering organisation that encourages people over the age of fifty to roll up their sleeves and make a difference in their community. They are not connected in any way with Social Services or any other agency, so that the help and support which patients might be entitled to, or are receiving from them or any other agency will not be affected by any support received from The Friends.
There are a number of ways in which The Friends might be able to help with appointments at the surgery or with hospital visits to see a consultant or other important appointments. They can also offer help with simple domestic tasks like changing a light bulb or small DIY jobs or help provide human contact and companionable conversation with their Volunteer Befriending by telephone or visiting housebound patients’ service.
On Fridays RSVP runs a very popular coffee morning for elderly people at Old Rope Walk, Blandford Road, Hamworthy, to which they could arrange for a Volunteer Driver to take anybody who would enjoy the friendly company of people their own age and disposition.
RSVP is part of the national charity Community Service Volunteers [CSV] and all its fully insured volunteers are people who have been confirmed as being honest, trustworthy and reliable. There is no tariff of charges as such for their services but they do solely rely on voluntary donations to cover expenses so that if transport services are used a fair and affordable donation toward the costs of the journey will be appreciated.
If the idea of being a good neighbour and helping someone who has difficulties appeals, they would be very happy to talk to you about what you might be interested in doing.
For further information please ring; Judy Green [01202] 625314.