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WEST COAST REVIEW | 25
pecially if you’ve been admitted
from the islands and are
a long way from friends and
family.
A warm welcome
During the day our volunteers
man the hospital reception.
We are there to direct people,
but it’s more than that
– we try to help people, and
make them feel less vulnerable
at what can be a diffi cult
time.
Volunteers also staff the
shop and cafe, which sells a
great selection of treats and
essentials for visitors, and
patients who might not have
the chance to pick things up
elsewhere.
The newspaper service volunteers,
who we call the
‘paper boys’ (though most
are retired gentlemen) collect
papers from the newsagents
on Albany Street in the mornings
and deliver them to the
wards. Again, it’s not really
about selling papers, but
about being available and
providing some friendly contact
for patients.
We also support the hospital
fi nancially with money
from our collection tins. The
profi ts from our cafe go back
to the RVS, a charity whose
volunteers care for those in
hospitals and communities
around Britain.
Volunteers
We need more volunteers to
help us to continue running
this service. New volunteers
would mean that we could
run the trolley more often
than just once a week, which
we would love to do.
There are opportunities in all
our roles – delivering newspapers,
on reception and in
the cafe. More volunteers
would mean that we could
extend the limited hours that
we are able to provide these
services at the moment.
We aim to help patients and
visitors, but the RVS is also
about the volunteers themselves.
It’s a great team,
and being part of it can give
volunteers important social
contact, just as it does the
patients.
We provide training, both
in supporting patients and
visitors, and in the practical
aspects of the job, such as
making a fantastic cup of
coffee. An assessor from
Coffee Republic (who supply
our coffee) comes to Oban
every three months, and the
volunteers always score extremely
highly!
How can I help?
Even a few hours a week
would be a big help. Contact
cathydolan1@btinternet.
com, contact the cafe direct
on 01631 570946, or ring
01866 822071.