A big week for professional development with my second course conducted at the Hospice over the last two days. Volunteers obviously are a huge part of our organisation, I have a lot of respect and admiration for these people who freely give their time and skills towards the community. I felt a little sheepish to be attending this course when my involvement with the organisation is in a paid role, but this eased considerably as the course unfolded.
I gained a deeper understanding of the palliative care work that is carried out here, which is very important for the fulfillment of my role in the organisation. This course provided the perfect setting for me to learn more about this and other aspects of working for a hospice.
I also got to meet some truly nice people with whom I hope to be working in the days ahead. The hope is that volunteers will gain something from the experience of working for the organisation, which will encourage them to stay. Some of our volunteers have been around for over ten years and still going strong.