I am absolutely thrilled to welcome Jonathan Tobutt to the OPAAL(UK) Board of Trustees. Jonathan is a very welcome addition to our team as he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience which he describes himself below.
Hello all, my name is Jonathan Tobutt. I have recently joined the OPAAL (UK) board of trustees. This is a new venture for me and I’m looking forward to working with the team. Born in London in 1955 – I now live in West Yorkshire – I trained as a classical musician before retiring from playing professionally full time in 1982 to pursue a career in education.
I have worked on a variety of interdisciplinary educational disciplines including medical training, probationary welfare and teaching basic literacy and numeracy skills for the Criminal Justice System. I have been a carer since 2005 when my partner was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. He has lived with a colostomy from 2010 and palliative status since 2011. He also has a nephrostomy. As with many other people my role as carer was the result of circumstances. Apart from the usual domestic nursing, I had little experience of caring full time, so the shock of our situation, both emotional and practical, was painful. As a carer I have run the gauntlet of being ignored, tolerated, patronised and to my latest incarnation of near sainthood. Having encountered bullying and insensitivity as well as touching humanity, it never ceases to amaze me that nuanced communication across the breadth of the medical world is so lacking a skill. For anyone in a supporting role or living with cancer we need a more holistic approach rather than the present emphasis on the biomedical model with honest discussions of outcome of any cancer procedure reflecting an expected lived experience. There are wonderful examples of such practices, but countrywide these ideals remain the exception. I am interested in how the older LGBT generations experience and cope with cancer and how the present model of care can be further developed to foster greater understanding of need.
Contact me via twitter jonathan@oboejonny
Older People Living with Cancer 
June 10, 2015 at 11:30 am
Welcome Jonathan. It has been heartwarming to read of your experiences and I know you will bring a great deal to the work of OPAAL. Best wishes also to you in your role as carer and to your partner too.
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