Going underground in Poole

October 11, 2017 by kathleengillett 2 Comments

Bob Smith, peer volunteer advocate with Dorset Macmillan Advocacy, can be relied upon to reach the parts that others cannot reach and last week was no exception.  Bob was invited by the Senior Therapy Radiographers to tour the Radiotherapy Department in the basement at Poole Hospital after giving a presentation to the radiotherapy team.  He was shown all the equipment currently in use in the Dorset Cancer Centre and heard about the plans to upgrade the machines and manage a new service at Dorset County Hospital.

During his presentation Bob talked about the role of a peer volunteer cancer advocate, screened the film ‘David’s Story’ and then invited questions.  Staff wanted to know about the capacity of the service, if the service could support family members as well as patients and how many different people a volunteer might be supporting at any one time. They also asked Bob to explain how volunteers maintained boundaries and handled the ending of advocacy partnerships.

Photograph shows Bob with L-R Katharine Spinks and Mandy Sydenham, Senior Therapy Radiographers.

Bob has been leading on the Older People’s Cancer Voices project in Dorset and has made presentations to many different audiences including the Afterglow Support Group for patients completing radiotherapy treatment at Poole.  The result of the additional promotional activity has meant that meant that referrals have increased, especially those from health professionals, and staff are now able to spend more time supporting advocacy partners and volunteer advocates.

Kathleen Gillett, Macmillan Project Coordinator, Dorset Macmillan Advocacy

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