NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has thanked one of its longest serving volunteers, who has spent more than 17 years giving up her time to help others.
And that effort has come at a time when her sight has been failing, and in recent years she has been left unable to see any colour at all, or to discern any significant detail in what she sees.
“The best way to describe it is I can go into the supermarket with one husband and leave with another. If I lose contact with my husband, well that’s me, completely lost,” said Elizabeth, 73, who lives “practically in the car park” of the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.
The sight loss was caused by Multiple Sclerosis, which can affect people in a variety of ways but which in Elizabeth’s case attacked her optic nerves.
“In the beginning I wasn’t good,” she said. “I wouldn’t go out, and it took me a few years to get over that.
“But you’ve got to find a different way. I craved independence – in fact I still do – and with the help of my husband Joe and daughter Fionathings slowly began to change.
“I would go out into the garden and then once I reached the front gate I wanted to go further.”
Before her MS, Elizabeth worked as a cashier at the old Southern General Hospital, and it was a couple of former colleagues who suggested she get into volunteering.
“At first I didn’t think I’d be able to do it,” she said, “but I decided to go for it and ended up volunteering in the Spinal Injuries Unit.
“I felt something special there. The unit did, and still does, amazing things, but in the evenings when the activities had stopped, it was more difficult for patients. The unit is a national service, so patients came from all over the country, from the islands or other remote areas of Scotland, and often they had no visitors.
“That was when I came in. I arrived in the evening, and I was there to chat to them and give them a bit of company. Many patients were in the unit for months or more, so I got to know them really well, and I’d like to think they valued the time I spent with them.”
Elizabeth was one of more than 100 volunteers, from NHSGGC, Glasgow City Health and Social Care Partnership and third sector organisations, to be honoured at a Civic Reception at Glasgow City Chambers earlier this month.
And while volunteers who had given 10 years and more of their time received a certificate at the event, Elizabeth was presented a special honour in recognition of her exceptional contribution.
Receiving the honour was a shock – and a delight – for Elizabeth.
“I never for a second thought I would get an award,” she said.
“When I heard about the civic reception I thought that’s nice, they’re having a celebration for volunteers, but it never crossed my mind that they’d be honouring the long-serving volunteers – let alone me.
“To be honest I didn’t realise I’d been here that long – because of my sight I couldn’t read my badge so I had no idea when I’d started!”
Elizabeth changed to volunteering in Wards 51 and 53 at the QEUH and, after the Covid break, moved to Ward 56, helping people who are recovering from stroke. There, she finds her own sight problems a bonus when she is on the ward.
She says that she and the patients are often “speaking from the same sheet”.
“Like the spinal unit, Ward 56 deals with long-term complex conditions and rehab, so I felt right at home when I arrived there,” she said. “I have a disability too, so I’m able to connect with them – to show them there is a way forward.”
Fiona Smith, Strategic Lead for Volunteering at NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, said: “For anyone to give up their time to help others is wonderful, and we would like to thank all our volunteers for the support they provide.
“However, it takes a particularly special person to put aside significant physical challenges of their own, so they can spend time in the service of our patients, and our staff.
“Elizabeth has never asked for recognition or for thanks, but after 17 years as a volunteer, it is more than fitting that her contribution has been honoured.
“On behalf of the hundreds of patients she has helped over the years, and everyone at NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, I would like to say thank you.”
Elizabeth is less than comfortable about receiving any praise for the work she does, but she hopes her story might inspire others who are facing difficult times.
She said: “For people like me, I’d suggest just taking it one day at a time. If it’s a good day, hang on to that, because there will be setbacks. But over time things get better.
“Volunteering has been great for me, and I’d encourage anyone else to get involved. It’s been huge in building my confidence and independence.
“I really need to thank my family and friends for their support and encouragement as I would never have managed without it.”
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is always keen to attract more volunteers to help in a range of services, so if you think you have something to offer our patients, visitors and staff, we’d love to hear from you.
Many sites across NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde are actively seeking to recruit volunteers, so to find out more about volunteering, and to see our current opportunities, go to our website: Volunteering – NHSGGC
To see more from the Civic Reception, go to: City throws party of thanks for Volunteers’ Week at NHSGGC – NHSGGC