Whitchurch's Jan nominated for national award after volunteering

Jan Thornhill, who volunteers at the hospital in Claypit Street, is up for a prize in the HelpForce Champions Awards for Health Volunteers 2018.

The awards provide health volunteers across the country with the opportunity to celebrate the diverse work they do and highlight the positive impact that volunteers have on patients and staff.

The winners in the eight categories will be unveiled in a glittering ceremony at Arundel House in London tomorrow.

Jan's nominations were submitted by Jo Gregory, head of nursing and quality, children and families; and Mark Donovan, patient experience and engagement lead at Shropshire Community Health Trust (Shropcom).

Jan was nominated for Volunteer of the Year for 'her amazingly patient-centred work'.

Her nomination said: “Jan has far exceed her volunteering role in so many ways, ranging from the hours she works to the genuine care and range of activities she provides to all patients, particularly dementia patients, and to the money she spends on activities.

“She worked as a staff nurse at Whitchurch Community Hospital for many years, and then decided to volunteer which she has been doing for the past four years.

“Jan has been an initiator and the backbone of organising many significant and well-attended patient and staff events such as harvest festival, diamond jubilee and Christmas carols to name a few.”

The former nurse was nominated for her award alongside the Observe and Act team at Shropcom who are made up of a group of volunteers.

This group realised there was a need for a community services observation feedback tool and have also been shortlisted in the Innovation in Volunteering category.

Their nomination said: “Observe and Act involves looking at a person’s total experience of a service from the service user or carer perspective to learn from it and act to make improvements.

"Immediately after a visit, feedback is given to the team and shared within Shropcom to support learning."