To celebrate Hospice Care Week’s ‘We Are Hospice Care’, we want to share some of the amazing stories of our staff, volunteers, and supporters and tell you why they decided to join the hospice movement.
Meet Hasun Tayyub, project lead for our brand new service, Support at Home. Although Hasun’s only been working at our Hospice for five months, he’s already witnessing first-hand the positive impact the new service is having on our individuals, families and carers. Here, he tells us what a hospice means to him, as well as the importance of never stopping learning.
I’ve been working at Birmingham St Mary’s for just over four months now, looking after our new ‘Support at Home’ service. Support at Home is a fantastic initiative, in which we visit individuals in their own homes to offer friendly companionship and a listening ear, as well as help them attend GP visits, support with correspondence and assist in finding services that could provide additional aid.
What amazes me most about the service though is that it is completely volunteer-led. It’s incredibly humbling to see so many people give up their time for free to help others. All of our volunteers go through specialist training for this role and it’s brilliant to see all of their hard work making such a big difference to other people.
I remember visiting one of our individuals recently – after a volunteer had seen them a couple of times – and the feedback I received was fantastic. Witnessing the positive changes in that individual’s behaviour was so fulfilling and it made me feel that all the work we do as a team is paying off.
What I love most about working at Birmingham St Mary’s is that you never stop learning. I work as part of the ‘multidisciplinary team’, which sees healthcare professionals from all different departments – from district nurses to social workers – come together to help improve the care we deliver to our people. Seeing the way different teams work collaboratively is very rewarding and it’s been a great opportunity for me to better my knowledge of end of life care. This has been vital to me, as it ensures that I am constantly improving my service to help better the experience for our individuals.
Everyone has a different view on what a hospice means to them but to me, it’s a home from home. I’ve got to know a lot of the teams here at Birmingham St Mary’s and I love working with them to deliver the amazing work we do. Not many people get to say that they look forward to coming into work every day but I really am one of the lucky few.
Birmingham St Mary’s does some remarkable work for individuals, their families, and their carers and I have been fortunate enough to see this first-hand. Just from speaking to the people we support is why I am a face of our Hospice – it’s so rewarding to see that the work we do is having a big impact on their lives and I look forward to continue to make this happen.
Hospice Care Week is a national week of activity which aims to raise the profile of hospice care across the UK. This year’s theme, ‘We Are Hospice Care’, is an opportunity to celebrate the many faces behind a hospice, honouring their dedication and passion.
If you would like help positively change the lives of local people living with terminal illness, why not try volunteering? We have lots of positions available and just a small amount of time can have a big impact. Take a look at our available positions here and help us to make a big difference to others.
