Call for volunteers to give cancer patients therapies

A cancer survivor, who is leading a new complementary therapy service to help others affected by the disease cope with their treatment, is calling on volunteer support.

Maureen Gildea, Macmillan cancer volunteer co-ordinator at the Cancer Wellbeing Centre, in the Royal Liverpool University Hospital's Linda McCartney Centre, was inspired to learn some of the therapies after her own treatment for ovarian cancer.

She is now using her experience to set up the new service, run in partnership between The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen Hospitals NHS Trust and Macmillan Cancer Support. It will be delivered by complementary therapy volunteers under Maureen's care and will help minimise the stress and anxiety patients can experience when diagnosed with cancer.

The Linda McCartney Centre has provided diagnosis, treatment and therapies to patients affected by cancer from across the region since it was founded in 2000. With more and more patients living with and beyond a cancer diagnosis, staff now want to expand the therapy services offered to patients, partners and carers and are appealing for volunteers to come forward to help achieve their goal.

Maureen explained:- "I was diagnosed in May 2010 with ovarian cancer and as a result received complementary therapies afterward which I loved and helped me to cope with the anxiety and stress. I loved them so much I have since qualified in aromatherapy, Swedish massage, Indian head massage, Reiki and reflexology.  I feel privileged to be working as a Macmillan professional within the Trust supporting patients and carers affected by cancer."

Maureen is now calling on other complementary therapists to volunteer for some of the rewarding roles available. She added:- "We would be interested in hearing from qualified experienced therapists who can provide aromatherapy, massage, Indian head massage, reflexology, Reiki, relaxation and meditation sessions to provide to patients at the world famous Linda McCartney Centre."

One patient who has already benefited from the services offered at the centre is 47 year old Colette Byrne.

Colette was diagnosed with bowel cancer in January last year. Radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment shrank the tumour but not significantly, so her bowel was removed during a 12-hour operation in June 2013.

Colette, a manager of 2 Surestart centres from West Derby, said:- "6 months of chemotherapy infusions followed which absolutely destroyed me and left me with neuropathy - nerve damage in my hands and feet. Sometimes I couldn't feel if I had shoes on.  A member of staff at the Linda McCartney Centre mentioned the complementary therapies. I am someone who would never go on a spa day or anything like that, so I was quite sceptical. She said 'why don't you ask Frankie if she will do your hands and see if it helps?' So I agreed."

Colette believes the reflexology she received from volunteer therapist Frankie Hodge at the Cancer Wellbeing Centre helped.

"It seemed to stimulate the nervous system back into action. For that half hour or 40 minutes in the therapy room I didn't feel I had cancer. It's like a safe haven. You can be a cancer patient if you want, but if you don't want to talk about it you don't have to.  Frankie has been an absolute star. She will never know how much I appreciate what she does. She has been a huge support.  She can have difficult conversations so it takes a special person to be able to always know what to say. I can't fault this hospital. The care has been over and above."  she said.

Frankie, 25, lost her father to cancer in 2010 and after seeing the good that therapies did for him, she resolved to provide others with the same service.  Frankie, who lives in Toxteth, had been a therapist for 18 months before volunteering at the centre for 2 days a week from December last year after completing short courses in cancer care, palliative care and aromatherapy.

Maureen added:- "Dad was having lymphatic massage, aromatherapy and Reiki after his operation. He benefitted a lot and that's when I got interested in complementary therapy. Only when dad passed away did I realise I wanted to give something back.  You feel like you're doing something important and making an impact on someone's life. And psychologically, I feel like I'm helping my dad. My dad said 'make sure no one ever has to go through what I've been through'.  The patients say the treatment helps them find a new normal and gives them the chance to find a new path. They come to the same place they have had a diagnosis and treatment, but for something positive. Patients feel they can let loose in the therapies room. For many they have never taken their wig off in front of anyone else. It can be a liberating experience.   Volunteers in this role will be offered regular reviews and emotional support. This is an opportunity to use your skills to support people at a difficult time while developing your experience within a cancer care setting. A regular weekly or fortnightly commitment between 10am to 3pm would be ideal, but times are flexible."

All potential volunteers require an enhanced DBS check, formerly known as CRB, and previous experience of providing treatments within a healthcare setting would be beneficial but not essential.

For further information contact Maureen Gildea by telephone:- 0151 706 4603, or by email:- Maureen.Gildea@rlbuht.nhs.uk.

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