Hospital group looking for PALS volunteers for Ennis Hospital

THE Patient Advocacy Liaison Service (PALS) of UL Hospitals Group is looking for volunteers to join their team in Ennis Hospital.

This will involved welcoming patients and visitors, assisting with way-finding and general queries, and helping people to give feedback on their experience of hospital service.

PALS volunteers are ambassadors for ULHG's hospitals and a crucial element of their efforts to improve care standards and the patient experience.

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Volunteers dressed in distinctive red tabards with embroidered gold logo, serve in multiple roles, whether giving directions or accompanying patients to appointments, giving out information, or gathering patient feedback.

The service is looking to hear from people who would be available to volunteer either in Ennis or Nenagh Hospitals, for a minimum of three hours per week during the mornings between 8.30am-12.30am.

In Ennis Hospital, Mary McInerney is the Assistant Director of Nursing for PALS volunteers says that local people volunteer for PALS for a wide range of reasons: “One of our longest serving volunteers told me simply that they enjoyed giving something back to their local community, and PALS gave them a very social way of doing it."

One volunteer who comes from overseas got involved with the service as a way of making connections and friends when they were settling into the area. Yet another volunteer joined the service after the death of their husband: they found it very important to commit to something positive; helping others helped them to adapt to their new life, Mary added.

For some, volunteering for PALS can be the very first step on a new career path. One of the very first volunteers for the service in Ennis Hospital subsequently became a porter in the hospital.

Anyone can volunteer for PALS, provided they are 18-years of age and older, and support the ethos and aims of UL Hospitals Group.

No qualifications are needed, as any support and training you need is provided.

Joe Cassidy, Operational Director of Nursing in Ennis Hospital, says PALS volunteers reflect the local community’s pride in their local hospital.

“PALS volunteers do not provide clinical care. They’re local faces, who are an invaluable source of information, support and comfort to patients and relatives and loved ones of patients in Ennis Hospital," he said.

Anyone interested in volunteering for PALS should: contact Ennis Hospital on 065-6824464 or send an email, outlining your hospital preference and available hours, to UHLPals@hse.ie