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December 2015
Manager’s Note
Sometimes it pays to look at the big picture.
A recent Huffington Post article reported on a study done by the
John Hopkins University’s Centre for Civil Society Studies in the
United States. The study shows that 140 million people volunteer
annually world-wide representing 20.8 million full-time equivalent
jobs. If all those volunteers were a country called Volunteer Land,
it would be the 9th largest country in the world – just behind
Russia in terms of population. The work of Volunteer Land was
conservatively estimated to be worth around US$400 billion, making
it number 30 on the list of countries ranked by Gross Domestic
Product.
That is a big picture! You are all part of that picture.
This year WCHN have celebrated 50 years of volunteering and had
an opportunity to look back on all that has gone before. It is a
great achievement for an organisation to have a successful
volunteer program operating for so many years.
We’ve also celebrated our annual WCHN Volunteer Service Awards,
acknowledging many great achievements. For a person to give 100
hours of their time, let alone 10 years, is a valued sacrifice and
contribution. The staff, women, children, babies and their families
all appreciate every minute of effort you give without concern of
reward.
Thank you for your valued contribution to the WCHN in 2015.
Cynthia, Linda and I all wish you a very happy festive season
surrounded by the people you love.
Lis Brittan
Manager, WCHN Volunteers
Christmas/New Year leave for volunteers As usual, WCHN
volunteers will be taking a well-earned break over the
Christmas/New Year period.
The official leave dates for WCH volunteers are -
Monday 21 December 2015 – 15 January 2016 inclusive
The WCHN Volunteer Unit will be staffed until COB on 23 December
2015. The unit will then be closed until Tuesday 5 January
2016.
If you wish to return to your area earlier (from 5 January
onwards) please discuss this with the supervisor in your work area
and advise volunteer unit staff.
Would Community volunteers please check leave dates with their
supervisors?
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Page 2
Welcome to New Volunteers
The following volunteers have commenced with the Volunteer Unit
since the July orientation. We give you a warm welcome and thank
you for your commitment to volunteering with the WCH.
Wendy Bryars CaFHS Home Visiting
Andrea Dekan-Nagy Medical Ward 1
Rosalie Gleeson Family Support, Cassia Ward
Jo Harding CaFHS Home Visiting
Andrada Iordachescu Family Support, Cassia Ward
Dianne Johnson CaFHS Home Visiting
Melanie Keogh DOSA/Day Surgery/ Campbell Ward
Penny Richardson Administrative Support, Medical Ward 1
Sarah Sanders Consumer Engagement
Kahli Schenscher Kate Hill Ward
Kelsey Walker Special Events
Jasmine Xie My Time
Book Week at WCH A very special parade to mark Book Week was
held in August at the WCH, with patients, parents, staff and
siblings dressing up as their favourite book char-acters. The
parade went from the Starlight Express Room to the hospital’s Play
Deck.
The project was a collaboration between the hospi-tal’s play
therapy team, Hospital Education Services, Starlight Captains,
Clown Doctors and the Women’s and Children’s Hospital Foundation –
TeamKids Arts in Health program.
Volunteers Raelene Potticary and Sue Lamphee looked ‘purrfect’
for the parade!
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Page 3
Volunteer Annual Feedback
The Volunteer Unit aims to provide best practice in volunteer
management and is committed to
continuous improvement.
Thank you to the many volunteers who have returned their
completed evaluation forms. Your response
has been excellent! Your feedback will now be evaluated and will
assist the unit to improve our
practices.
The results will be published in the next volunteer newsletter
which will be out in February 2016.
The Pharmacy Department at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital
(WCH) provides a range of medicines-related services. Our primary
focus is to help our patients, parents/carers and other health care
professionals to use medicines safely, ensuring the best health
outcomes.
The Pharmacy Department employs approximately 50 staff including
pharmacists, pharmacy assistants and other support staff with
specific expertise to provide the following services:
Dispensary/medicines distribution Responsible for the safe and
accurate supply of medicines to patients and ensuring those
patients and their families are provided with information on how to
take their medicines. The service is only for hospital patients and
prescriptions are required.
Clinical pharmacy service The clinical pharmacists work closely
with the healthcare team (e.g. doctors, nurses, midwives) within
the hospital to optimise medicine treatment of patients. They
provide advice on how much medicine to take, when and how to give
medicines and potential unwanted effects.
Obstetric and Paediatric Medicines Information Service A
state-wide service providing specialised advice to hospital and
community health professionals and the general public on the safe
and appropriate use of medicines in children, pregnancy and during
breastfeeding.
Phone: (08) 8161 7222
(Monday – Friday, 9am to 5pm)
Manufacturing services We have two large units that manufacture
medicines. Sterile manufacturing prepares injectable medicines, eye
drops and medicines to treat cancer. Non-sterile manufacturing
prepares creams and liquid medicines for children who cannot
swallow tablets.
The Pharmacy Department also provides education and training to
health professionals and students and supports clinical trials that
involve medicines.
For more information on what the Pharmacy Department does or
other pharmacy initiatives speak to one of the helpful Pharmacy
staff members!
Pharmacy Department
Women’s and Children’s Hospital
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Page 5
WCHN Volunteers
Award Presentation
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Page 6
The day I walked into the Volunteer Office in Women’s and
Children’s Hospital and met Cynthia is still clearly pictured in my
mind. That was a nice, warm afternoon, a good start to my volunteer
experience in Australia. Time flies; it has been more than one
year. When Cynthia asked me why I wanted to be a volunteer, I
realised that it was unusual to see a young Chinese face among the
WCHN volunteer community.
Since I came to Australia to study, I have noticed that
volunteering is a big idea here. During my more than ten years
working experience in China, I had been worked under high pressure
in both law and finance areas, which are both full of competition
and economic interests.
Stopping my career temporarily, being apart from my son and
coming to Australia to study for a Masters degree is not an easy
step for an over 30-year-old Chinese woman. It can’t be more
difficult to decide to be a volunteer. So, why not? To have a fresh
start for a totally different life is a great experience. I’d like
to help people. I’d like to see people around me smile. I’d like to
help to make positive changes to other people’s work and lives. The
essential element of being a volunteer is to give without expecting
repayment. I am aware that the patients’ parents may never know my
name or even realize my existence, but I still feel delighted
because I know I have been helpful in their lives. Even sometimes
not everyone smiles at me when I am doing my volunteer job, I never
doubt this is a
right decision. No matter others appreciate my work or not, I
still believe this is a right decision and worth doing.
In this warm WCHN Volunteer group, I have met a lot of nice
people. Cynthia and Lis in the Volunteer Office always welcome me
with big smiles. In the Home Equipment Centre, Linda taught me a
lot to understand how the department works and Lis comforted me
with a nice red velvet cake when I had some unhappy experiences at
work. In the 50th Anniversary Celebrations, I met Emily who is such
an interesting and knowledgeable girl. At the Christmas meal last
year, I met Rosalie and now we are good friends. During the
Christmas meal, I felt Rosalie is a wise lady who likes Adelaide’s
multicultural environment and likes to learn new things from
different cultures. Now we meet for coffee every couple of weeks
and exchange news about our families and lives. Last month, I
invited Rosalie to attend my Master Degree graduation ceremony in
Bonython Hall at University of Adelaide. She was pleased and
accepted. I feel so happy that she was there to share such a big
moment of my life. She watched the whole process and we took some
pictures in the beautiful campus.
With all the care and support I will keep doing my volunteer
work. My life in Australia will go on. My friendships with these
lovely friends will go on. I am sure no difficulties can stop my
steps.
Yi Yu
Volunteer
We asked volunteer Yi Yu to write about her experiences in
Adelaide and also volunteering with the Women’s and Children’s
Health Network. Her volunteering story is an example of the many
rewarding connections that people make as part of their volunteer
journey.
Volunteering at the WCH
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Some 15 years before the Children’s Hospital was founded in
1876, a child was born in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond. The
date of the birth was 19 May 1861 and the name of the child was
Helen Porter Mitchell.
You may not recognize her with these few words of introduction,
but she was to become one of the world’s greatest sopranos, known
as Dame Nellie Melba.
As Helen (Nellie) Mitchell she left Australia in 1886 to study
singing in Paris under the renowned teacher Madame Marchesi. She
made her debut in Brussels in the following year in the role of
Gilda, the daughter of Verdi’s Rigoletto. At this time she adopted
the stage name Melba after the city of her birth.
Nellie appeared frequently in London’s Covent Garden from 1889
with yearly appearances until 1909 and then less frequently until
1928. She also appeared in operatic centres such as Paris, Milan,
New York and Chicago. Australia did not miss out as she travelled
the country of her birth in 1902, 1907 and 1909 with highly
successful concert tours.. She organized and starred in other
productions in Australia in conjunction with theatre manager JC
Williamson in 1911, 1924 and 1928.
Besides having an exceptional singing voice, Dame Nellie
possessed a strong, almost regal presence, both on stage and off.
She decided which artists could appear with her. Similarly she
never employed a manager, but kept a very close eye on all aspects
of the business side of her career. She was created a Dame in 1918
and was enormously popular with
the public.
Dame Nellie continued singing until just 3 year’s prior to her
death in Sydney on 23 February 1931. Earlier, in 1961, Australia
issued a 5 penny stamp to mark the centenary of Dame Nellie’s
birth.
The relevance of all this is to recall that Dame Nellie Melba,
described by Margaret Barbelet (author of The Adelaide Children’s
Hospital 1876-1976)) as “that most Edwardian phenomenon”, visited
the Children’s Hospital on several occasions. In 1903, on one such
visit, “Madame Melba … was enchanted by a young boy who told her
she was the greatest singer in the world”. Perhaps because of this
adulation, the singer revisited the Hospital, gave a 50 pound
donation and became a Life Member of the Institution.
We may owe the young patient a considerable debt for the
publicity that would have brought!
Dr Brian Fotheringham, on behalf of the WCH Heritage and History
Committee
cxÉÑÄx tÇw gtÄxá yÜÉÅ à{x [ÉáÑ|àtÄ Heritage and History
Committee
The singer who signed the visitors’ book
Dame Nellie Melba’s signature taken from the visitor’s book of
the Adelaide Children’s Hospital which is kept by the Heritage and
History Committee.
We are finishing of the year by reprinting another article from
Dr Brian Fotheringham. From early in 2016, Emily Collins the museum
consultant with the Heritage and History Committee, will regularly
provide us with insights into the fascinating historical collection
of the Women’s and Children’s Health Network.
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Delivery of home equipment supplies
Driver needed urgently
The Home Equipment Centre in Paediatric Outpatients issues
supplies for home-based
equipment used by chronically ill paediatric patients.
Eight years ago a home delivery service was set up to assist
these patients and their
families so that they do not need to make the often difficult
journey in to the WCH to pick
up supplies. The deliveries are made on the morning of the first
and third Tuesdays of
each month and the volunteer drivers use a Fleet SA car which is
based at the hospital.
The previous volunteer driver could no longer assist the program
because of work
commitments and we are now urgently seeking a regular driver and
also a relief driver to
continue this vital service..
If you would like more information about this role, please speak
to Lis or Cynthia. If you
know someone who may be interested in assisting, please give
them our contact details.
Contact us
Lis Brittan
Manager WCHN Volunteers
Tel: 8161 8475
[email protected]
Cynthia Baldwin
Coordinator WCHN Volunteers
Tel: 8161 6437
[email protected]
Linda Dyett
Administration Officer WCHN Volunteers
Tel: 8161 7471
[email protected]
Clearance letters from DCSI Screening Unit
The screening unit of the Department of Communities and Social
Inclusion will notify you by
letter when your child-related or vulnerable person clearance is
through.
These high level clearances are valid for three years so please
make sure you keep the
letters in a safe place in case you have to show proof of
clearance to another organisation.
We have been asked several times for copies of the letters
because volunteers have
misplaced their original letter. DCSI will not issue a
replacement letter and we are only able
to supply a clearance reference number.
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]
