Caring and compassionate Lewis makes all the difference
9th November 2020
Submitted by Eleanor Morri, Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust
Lewis Hickinbottom joined the Trust to support our Clinical Volunteers programme (set up in March 2020) during the Covid-19 outbreak. Lewis’s reasons for wanting to help us were that he saw our advert and call for help. As a 6th form student, Lewis had time on his hands with school closure, and wanted to help. In his application, he told us: “I believe the NHS needs as many pairs of hands as possible during the Covid-19 pandemic and therefore, I would like to volunteer my free time to help out the NHS staff who are working non-stop to make this situation as best as possible for us. I am quite a joyous person, I like to see people happy therefore I believe I would be a good fit for this role.” We felt that these words from a young man, who found his life changed dramatically while having to stop his studies, very humbling to hear.
He has quickly settled into a role, not only at our Rehabilitation hospital supporting elderly patients or patients with cognitive conditions such as stroke or brain injury, but also more latterly, within our acute hospital site on a stroke and dementia ward. Lewis is greatly appreciated by the staff who agree he has taken the pressure off them enormously and enhanced the patient experience. He volunteers a staggering three 12-hour shifts per week which he put himself forward to do, we have never known a volunteer offer such long shifts before and we were overwhelmed at his generosity.
Lewis is currently studying a diploma in sports sciences and we were very impressed to hear that he is also currently doing the Duke of Edinburgh Silver award and has also just secured a job as a LifeGuard.
Lewis hopes to still continue his volunteering with us when he picks up his studies again, which we are delighted to hear. Lewis has said once he starts back in 6th form, he will still support us as and when needed, around the clock, to fit in with his course.
Lewis approached us to offer his support as a young man who found his studies interrupted due to Covid-19. He felt that he wanted to support the NHS with his newly discovered spare time and strong community spirit. His volunteering has benefitted him by offering skills, experience and insights into working as part of a team and in a large organisation, but it has benefited us too as he has been such a pleasure to have on board. He is very enthusiastic and easy to get on with, and shows maturity for his age. He gets on well with both patients and staff. He has made friends with other volunteers in his cohort of his own age and of older age groups. He is well liked and respected by all and is a role model for young volunteers. Although Lewis didn’t approach us to volunteer due to career aspirations aligned with the NHS, the volunteering has made him think about this and he is interested in possibly becoming a Healthcare Assistant.
Since he commenced in May 2020, Lewis has contributed an amazing 436 hours of volunteering, which is truly astounding, not missing attendance for one week in this time. We sometimes have to remind Lewis that he deserves or needs a break.
We have received amazing feedback from the Matron at the rehabilitation hospital where she states that Lewis and other volunteers have been invaluable during this extraordinary time. The assistance they have provided to the nursing and support services has been thankfully received by the teams. They have been extremely professional and selfless in giving their time to help and without them many patients would have had a more difficult time whilst unable to see their loved ones, Lewis has become friends to patients and a valuable part of the team on both wards.
They wanted to personally thank him and say they could not have survived the last few months without the volunteer support! - A truly outstanding testament.
This outstanding contribution also upholds our Trust vision which is to continually strive to improve the outcomes and experiences for the communities that we serve. Our Trust values are to be Kind and Caring, Exceed Expectation and be Safe and effective and Lewis has demonstrated all three with the fantastic contribution he has made.
We truly appreciate Lewis’s contribution and feel confident he will do very well in whatever he turns his mind to.
Enjoy reading Lewis's story? Why not read all Wall of Fame stories here.