Royal Free Charity volunteer handbook

Making today feel better

royalfreecharity.org

Volunteering can develop your skills, knowledge and experience however you volunteer with the Royal Free Charity.

Every hour you give makes a vital contribution towards achieving our aim to make today feel better for patients, their families and staff at the Royal Free, Barnet Hospital and Chase Farm Hospital. Thanks to the support of volunteers like you, we can make a real difference. We hope this will give you enormous enjoyment and satisfaction.

“

I really love taking the trolley around to the patients and getting a chance to chat. I feel that it makes a real difference to people and that makes me want to do more.�

Claire McNamara

VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

KEY CONTACT

CONTENTS Help make today feel better

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The Royal Free Hospital Trust

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Being a volunteer

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Key skills

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Listening skills

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What you can expect from us

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What we expect from you

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If you have a problem

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Learning & development

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Giving back to you

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Essentials 11 Policies and procedures

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Need more info?

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

“

Volunteering gives you back more than you give out, seeing the comfort, pleasure and relief on patients’ faces when you know you have helped make their day feel that little bit better.”

Rosa and Christine

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Royal Free Charity Making today feel better

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

At the Royal Free Charity we aim to make every day feel better for patients and staff.

We do this through four main objectives.

1 Adding value to the patient experience 2 Helping improve the staff experience 3 Investing in the physical and technical environment 4 Investing in medical research and facilities

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hether you are helping staff on W the wards, fundraising for new innovative research, spending time with lonely patients or any of the many other roles our volunteers do, you are helping us reach our objectives with every hour you give.

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

About the Trust HISTORY The Royal Free Hospital was established in 1828 in Greville St Hatton Garden by William Marsden, who was moved to open his own free hospital after discovering a young girl dying as she could not afford hospital admission. It was originally named the “London General Institution for the Gratuitous Cure of Malignant Diseases”. It was not known as The Royal Free Hospital until 1837, and did not move to its current site until 1978.

Barnet Hospital first provided healthcare as an infirmary in the Barnet Union Workhouse in 1838.

Chase Farm Hospital began as a home for pauper children in 1884.

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In 2014, Barnet Hospital and Chase Farm Hospital joined the foundation trust, bringing further medical expertise and local care to the NHS services it provides.

BECOME A TRUST MEMBER Membership is a great way of strengthening your bond with the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust and it’s free to join!

By becoming a member you will be kept up to date with the latest developments and news, and also be invited to events aimed at informing and engaging you. Download a membership form online at secure.membra.co.uk/ RoyalFreeApplicationForm/

VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

At the Royal Free Charity we’re proud to work in partnership with the Trust and so respect their ambitions as well as ours.

TRUST VALUES We ask that all volunteers follow the four Trust values:

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

Being a volunteer Volunteering is a unique experience and can make a difference to many people’s lives as well as your own.

KEY SKILLS • Empathy • Problem solving • Time management • Good communication • Working as part of a team LISTENING SKILLS

Many volunteering roles require good listening. These are some of our handy tips to help you: • Maintain eye contact • Use positive body language • Keep on listening • Face the person you’re listening to

What are my top 3 key skills?

• • •

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM US • Equal opportunities to everyone who wants to volunteer • Match your skills and experiences with the right roles for you wherever possible, listening to your motivations and aspirations • Provide a clear volunteer description clarifying your role and responsibilities and the standards required • Offer appropriate training and support and encourage you to develop in your role • Celebrate success and recognise your contribution • Respect all volunteers and listen to what you have to say • Provide information about our policies and our procedures • Reimburse agreed out of pocket expenses in line with Royal Free Charity policy and guidance • Make necessary arrangements to ensure your health, safety and welfare as a volunteer • Encourage a positive atmosphere to enable you to have the best volunteering experience possible • Listen to and act on your concerns if expectations aren’t met Royal Free Charity Making today feel better

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

WHAT WE EXPECT FROM YOU • Commit to our aims and values and be a positive advocate for the Royal Free Charity • A im for high standards of efficiency, reliability and quality in your volunteering; giving the best of your skills and abilities • T reat everyone you come into contact with through your role with dignity and respect, understanding that no form of harassment, bullying or discrimination will be tolerated • W ork in partnership with other volunteers, charity and hospital staff and the general public • S upport and act in accordance with our organisational policies, guidelines, procedures and management decisions – including all aspects of equal opportunities, health and safety, finance, data protection, safeguarding and to ask if something isn’t clear • Respect and maintain confidentiality • A lways consider and protect the Royal Free Charity’s reputation in your actions and conduct, acting responsibly and within the law • B e accountable for your behaviour and actions and be open to receiving feedback

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• L et your volunteer team contact know first if you have any problems so that we can find a solution together • L et your volunteer team contact know if there are changes in your personal circumstances that may affect your volunteering IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM We take your concerns seriously and we’ll make every reasonable effort to resolve any difficulties. If you have any problems or complaints about your volunteering please take the following steps: • Talk to your volunteer team contact immediately • Your volunteer team contact will hold an informal meeting with you and make every reasonable attempt to find a satisfactory solution, this might include further training or changes to the role • If informal approaches have been reasonably tried and failed to resolve the situation, or the complaint is about your volunteer team contact, you should contact their line manager who will review the situation and suggest actions to resolve the situation

VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT On top of your initial induction and training, we also provide additional training to help you get the most out of your role.

We also work in partnership with outside organisations to provide you with employability support including CV writing workshops.

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

GIVING BACK TO YOU We are always looking for new ways to give back to our volunteers.

Whether it’s our newsletter, featuring volunteer stories and fundraising updates, or our annual volunteer party, where we invite everyone to a night of live music and dancing, we want our volunteers to know how appreciated they are. The Royal Free Trust even has a volunteer category in its annual awards ceremony, where volunteers from across the sites who have gone above and beyond in helping and supporting patients are honoured.

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Essentials

Uniform

Feedback

Travel expenses

Social media

Parking

Photography

Lunch

Media relations

Personal property

Boundaries

Signing in and out

Smoking and substance abuse

Holidays and absences

Equal opportunities and diversity

Change of address or contact details

Insurance

References Ending your volunteering

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Essentials

UNIFORM Before you begin volunteering you will receive a purple volunteer top which must be worn every time you volunteer.

LUNCH If you volunteer for over three hours we will provide you with a lunch voucher which can be used in the staff restaurants on site.

The hospitals can be very warm, especially on the wards, so it is advisable to wear clean comfortable clothing and quiet, flat shoes.

All must be ‘bare below the elbow’ whilst on the wards so please remove watches and jewellery and roll up your sleeves. Open toed shoes or flip flops are not permitted and long hair should be tied up, especially when around food. No nail varnish to be worn on wards.

PERSONAL PROPERTY You will be shown where you can store your personal property while you volunteer. If the site you volunteer at uses lockers you may need to bring a £1 coin to use the locker. Please do not bring items of great value into the hospital as we cannot take responsibility for the loss or damage of any personal property.

TRAVEL EXPENSES All reasonable travel expenses will be reimbursed as long as a receipt is provided. Claim forms are available from the Volunteer Office and should be completed and returned to the office within a month of travel.

Please refer to the travel expenses policy for further information.

PARKING Please note that there is very limited parking across the sites, and no allocated volunteer parking. If you are a Blue badge holder, please speak to us about the possibility of parking provision.

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SIGNING IN & OUT You will be shown where you can sign in and out at the beginning and end of your volunteering. It is important to remember to sign in and out as not only do we have a duty of care to know where you are, but it also helps us measure more accurately the impact you are making as a volunteer. If you are volunteering outside of office hours please ask your supervisor how to record your hours.

HOLIDAYS & ABSENCES If you go on holiday please let the volunteer team know in advance so that we can arrange cover for your session. If your absence is through illness or unexpected in any other way please telephone the office as soon as possible.

VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Essentials

CHANGE OF ADDRESS OR CONTACT DETAILS Please let the Volunteer Team know of any changes of name, address, telephone number or e-mail address at the earliest possible convenience.

SOCIAL MEDIA

You are expected to ensure that the information and opinions you share protects The Royal Free Charity’s reputation and are not in conflict with our brand, guidelines and policies or could bring the organisation into disrepute.

REFERENCES We will gladly provide a reference once you have successfully completed • Use common sense when posting your placement. anything online ENDING YOUR • Only post things you would be VOLUNTEERING happy to be repeated – remember There may come a time when your what you say online can never be circumstances change and either completely private you or the volunteer team feel the role you are undertaking is no • Respect confidentiality, data longer right or possible for you. protection and personal privacy You can talk to your staff contact PHOTOGRAPHY to see if any other more suitable

We may use photographs of roles are available, but if not, then volunteers carrying out their roles you will be invited to step back from for promotional purposes, for volunteering, to enjoy the friendships example in a leaflet or online. If you you have made and belong to the don’t want us to use your image wider community. please make your staff contact/event FEEDBACK photographer aware at the time. If We are always interested in knowing we plan on using any images we will what our volunteers feel about how ask for consent from you by asking we are doing as a team. Because of you to sign a media consent form. this we put out an annual satisfaction If you wish to take a photo of your survey, so that volunteers can have volunteering activity, please speak their say. to a member of staff to gain permission first.

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Essentials

MEDIA RELATIONS No comments or stories should be given to the media. Any requests from the press should be referred to the Charity staff team.

BOUNDARIES Through regular volunteering you may come into contact with patients more than once and can sometimes build strong bonds with people you meet. It is important to keep professional boundaries keeping the focus on the needs of the patient, relatives or carers.

For example please do not share your personal contact details, befriend them on Facebook or meet up with them socially.

Our volunteer roles are focussed on engaging in friendly conversations and as such it is important that you do not share strong personal, political, cultural and religious opinions.

SMOKING & SUBSTANCE MISUSE All hospitals where volunteers are based are smoke free. No smoking is allowed in or near the sites.

Volunteering whilst under the influence of alcohol or drugs will not be accepted.

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EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES AND DIVERSITY You’ll be volunteering in an organisation that is committed to creating and fostering a culture that promotes respect for each other and values individual differences.

We will not condone, tolerate or ignore any form of discrimination or unacceptable behaviour.

Volunteers should alert a member of the Volunteer Team should they experience an act of discrimination or perceived discrimination.

INSURANCE The Royal Free Charity has appropriate types of insurance in place to cover our volunteers. These include employers’ liability insurance and public liability insurance which provide cover in the event of a volunteer being harmed due to negligence of the charity or a third party being injured as a result of the actions of a volunteer whilst performing Royal Free Charity duties.

However, our insurance does not cover your personal belongings.

VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Policies & procedures

Health and safety Fire safety Infection control Safe guarding Information governance Dementia awareness

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Policies & procedures

HEALTH & SAFETY

Keeping yourself safe:

• Follow any training you have received.

• T ake reasonable care of your own and other people’s health and safety.

• T ell someone if you feel your role is putting anyone’s health and safety at serious risk.

How do I report an incident?

Ask your local supervisor (ward manager or housekeeper) to log the incident and make a note of their name.

Also report it to the volunteer team and pass on the name of your local supervisor.

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Policies & procedures

FIRE SAFETY The correct action to take if you discover a fire in your area: 1 If you discover a fire, raise the alarm immediately by operating the nearest fire alarm call point & telephoning • Royal Free Hospital x5555 • Barnet & Chase Farm x3333 2 Assist in removing patients, visitors, and staff from the danger area.

3 Attack the fire with the correct extinguisher if it is safe and you have been trained to do so.

On hearing an intermittent fire alarm: I f the fire alarm sound is intermittent (in intervals): It means that the fire alarm has been triggered in an adjacent area. There may be a fire in an adjacent area but there is no immediate risk to life or requirement to evacuate in the area where you are.

A member of staff will go to the fire alarm panel to find out if there is an emergency and then report their findings to those working in your area.

On hearing a continuous fire alarm: I f the fire alarm sound is continuous: It means that the fire alarm has been triggered in the department/ward that you are in.

V olunteers working in non-clinical areas should evacuate from the building with the staff.

V olunteers working in clinical areas should report to the reception desk/nurse-in-charge and prepare to evacuate with the clinical staff if necessary.

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Policies & procedures

INFECTION CONTROL As well as always wearing correct clothing and keeping your arms bare below the elbows and long hair tied up while on wards, there are a number of ways volunteers can prevent the spread of infection.

Isolation rooms All the wards across the sites will have isolation rooms that you must take note of. The patients in these rooms are in isolation and so the rooms are out of bounds for volunteers. If a member of staff insists that you go in please call the volunteer team.

Please wash and/or gel hands between having contact with patients.

If you feel unwell and think that you may be contagious – sore throat/cold/stomach ache/itchy eyes etc. then please call us and do not come in to volunteer. You might put a patient’s life at risk if they have a low immune system.

If you have any small open wounds/paper cuts or burns then please put a plaster on them to cover them up, the volunteer team will be able to provide plasters and bandages. This will help prevent the spread of infection.

You will receive special training by our infection control team on what is best practice in the hospital and on the wards.

Nil By Mouth food and feeding restrictions Never feed patients unless you have completed the specific training.

Do not give any patients who have Nil By Mouth ( NBM ) sign by their bedside any food or drink from any trolleys or serve them any water, tea, coffee or food. If in doubt ask a member of staff.

Please do not disturb patients if their bedside curtain is closed.

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Policies & procedures

The examples shown here are posters you may well see in various places on wards and will explain the specific isolation needs of the unit. You must not enter spaces allocated as isolation units.

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Policies & procedures

SAFEGUARDING

What is safeguarding?

Protecting people from harm, preventing the risk of abuse or neglect and ensuring children grow up in circumstances that allow safe and effective care.

We’re committed to safeguarding the well-being of all staff, volunteers and patients who are involved in or are affected by our work.

You are expected to complete the volunteer safeguarding training and report any concerns to your staff contact.

Dealing with disclosure If a child or adult discloses something to you whilst you are volunteering: Don’t ignore or silence them.

Do not promise to keep secrets- you may need to tell somebody to stop the abuse Stay calm, and remember that your job is to listen.

Do not ask leading questions. Repeat back what they have said in their words to check you have understood.

Make an accurate record of what you have been told, recording date, time, names.

Do not act alone.

CONTACT A SENIOR MEMBER OF WARD STAFF AND INFORM THE VOLUNTEER TEAM

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Policies & procedures

INFORMATION GOVERNANCE The Data Protection Act 1998/2018 and EU General Data Protection Regulation makes it unlawful to disclose sensitive information about individuals without the person’s prior permission. It is EVERYONE’S responsibility to protect data, this includes the volunteer team and the volunteers.

In your duties as a volunteer you may come across a patient’s personal information. This could be any number of things including their home address, the nature of their illness, or even the fact that they are a patient at all. On no account should these sorts of personal details be given to enquirers.

It is very important that volunteers do not discuss any information you see or hear about patients, either inside or outside the hospital, unless you have concern about a patient’s welfare, in which case you should immediately inform the nurse in charge and the volunteer management.

YOUR DATA – AS PER YOUR VOLUNTEER AGREEMENT

Why have we asked for it?

• Health or disability information to keep you and patients safe • Disclosure and barring service to safeguard people we work with

What do we do with it?

• Share with relevant people i.e. Health and Work Centre • Store it safely for as long as relevant • Dispose of it securely

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Policies & procedures

“

I’m 84 but I still have my health.

I started coming in to the Royal Free because I had friends in the hospital and then I thought actually I quite like helping people here and have been volunteering since.”

Robert Salmon

DEMENTIA AWARENESS Dementia is a progressive, incurable condition of the brain that affects over 850,000 people across the UK. This figure will increase to over a million in the next ten years and very soon, every family in the UK will be personally touched by dementia. In the NHS, over 25% of all beds are occupied by a patient living with dementia, that’s one patient out of every four. If you have dementia, being in hospital can be an extremely frightening experience and patients regularly show signs of increased confusion, anxiety and distress than people who don’t have dementia.

Boredom, loneliness and social isolation are major causes of low mood and loss of functional abilities (communication, mobility and independence) for these patients in hospital. Social interaction can be intimidating for people who might be feeling extra muddled in a new hectic place like a busy hospital ward. For this reason, we use therapeutic activity to engage lonely and distressed patients in a non-threatening way. By joining in an activity as a group we can build confidence, self-esteem and create the really important connections between our patients and staff.

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK Policies & procedures

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VOLUNTEER HANDBOOK

Need more information?

If you need more detail about any of our policies or procedures or just have a question, then please come into the office speak to your key contact or check online: royalfreecharity.org/volunteering MY NOTES

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TELL US YOUR STORY Share your volunteering stories and help us inspire more people to join us in the fantastic work you do.

• Feature it in the Volunteer Newsletter • Showcase it on our website • Represent us in our marketing materials

By volunteering with the Royal Free Charity you are helping to make every day feel better for patients, their families and staff at the Royal Free, Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals.

All the people featured in this booklet are genuine volunteers either current or past.

Charity no. 1165672

royalfreecharity.org