Student volunteers recognised for their excellence
We were delighted to celebrate UHDB and League of Friends volunteers recently, in a ceremony that recognised our dedicated volunteers that have supported the Trust. We were also able to recognise our student volunteers for their exceptional work they have provided during their work experience placements.
UHDB partners with Derby College and local schools and colleges in both Derbyshire and Staffordshire to offer work experience placements for year 11 and over in various departments within the Trust.
Samantha Baller, Voluntary Services Co-ordinator for volunteers based at Royal Derby and Florence Nightingale Hospitals, spoke of the importance of offering work experience for students:
“The student volunteers are important to the trust because we are helping our next generation of adults to experience and see with their own eyes the types of career opportunities that are available in the NHS. These students are the NHS workforce of the future”.
We spoke to two students who were being recognised for their exemplary work during their time volunteering.
Herbert Muhwezi, age 19, is studying Health and Social Care at Derby College. Currently, Herbert volunteers on a ward at Royal Derby Hospital, assisting and observing staff and supporting patients on the ward. Following on from the excellent feedback received from staff members about his volunteer work, Herbert was recognised at the awards ceremony for his outstanding contribution and commitment to volunteering and awarded Derby College Student of the Year.
When asked about how he felt receiving this recognition, Herbert said he felt “overwhelmed” and said that he was just doing his role: “I didn’t realise I was being noticed by others, I just come to the hospital to do my role, I definitely didn’t expect this”.
Herbert is interested in a career in nursing and has credited his time volunteering at RDH for providing him with a lot of experience and has helped him to see what it is like to work in the NHS.
17-year-old Adrian Diaz Blanco volunteers once a week after school and helps during mealtime whilst also spending time to talk to the patients, giving him experience of a ward environment. Adrian was recognised for his hard work and can-do attitude. Adrian hopes to go to university to study medicine and has said his time volunteering has “helped to confirm that this is the career path he wants” and that the volunteer work is really going to help his university applications.
If you want to find out how you can get involved in work experience opportunities, you can visit the UHDB website for more information on work experience >