WHAT IS YOUR ROLE AT WILLOW WOOD HOSPICE?

I am a Trustee who sits on the board, offering specialist clinical expertise to the Board and senior management team. I chair the Clinical Governance and Clinical Strategy committees.

WHAT ARE THE REWARDS OF YOUR ROLE?

I love working with Nicola Cheetham, the Clinical Director, and her teams and others, using my expertise to offer advice, listen and sometimes simply supporting their decision making… a sort of friendly critical friend!

I enjoy the organisational development of the role, ensuring the services offered at Willow Wood are timely, equitable and meet the needs of patients and families in Tameside and Glossop with life-limiting illnesses requiring palliative, supportive and end-of-life care.

The other Trustees offer a range of skills and expertise which are essential for leading and supporting the senior management team. Essentially the richness of the team is what I enjoy about the role and also as Trustees or senior managers, we continue to respectively listen and learn from each other.

WHAT ATTRACTED YOU TO WILLOW WOOD AND WHAT WERE YOUR FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF THE HOSPICE?

I moved to Didsbury after working and living in London for over 36 years. I had never heard of Willow Wood until a friend of my sister; who was employed at the Hospice; asked if I would be interested in becoming a Trustee, given my 40 plus years working in tertiary and quaternary cancer and palliative care in the capital.

I immediately leapt at the chance as it would give me something useful to do as I had recently retired and it would allow me to meet new people, as well as gain an understanding of the local health and social care economy.

My first impressions where; it was a lovely building situated in beautiful grounds, the staff including volunteers were all friendly, motivated and committed to the care of patients and families requiring specialist palliative care whatever their role.

DO YOU HAVE ANY HOBBIES/INTERESTS OUTSIDE OF WORK YOU ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT?

I love the theatre, opera, musicals and have a very eclectic taste in music. I enjoy travelling to London, the coast, Europe and especially New York!

Gardening is something I now enjoy, given I am now retired, rather than having to keep on top of when I was working!

I love a good charity shop or car boot sale bargain!

I loved working in the NHS and I am still passionate about it and helped lead an end of life care team at Salford Royal at the beginning of the pandemic and latterly became a Covid vaccinator! I am now a part time subject matter expert; teaching nursing, physio, radiographer students and other health care registrants at the Christie which I love but do like being retired especially in the summer months!

IF YOU COULD CHOOSE FOUR DINNER PARTY GUESTS (FICTIONAL OR REALITY) FROM ANY TIME OF YOUR LIFE, WHO WOULD THEY BE AND WHY?

1) Adam Frost from Gardener’s World as I enjoy his approach to gardening and hope he would give me some tips on my limited gardening skills!

2) Mary Berry. I can’t and hate cooking so would hope Mary with a glass of good wine and good company would be encouraged to take control of cooking the ingredients, whilst at the same time encouraging us all to muck in and help! Of course, it would be a lovely evening and we would have the run of the garden too!

3) Barbara Streisand, who I have been a fan of since I was 19. She would be encouraged to sing and who I know enjoys good food as well as a passionate interest in gardening.

4) Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who was the associate justice of the supreme courts in the USA. She lead the way on equality for all regardless of gender and more importantly deliver speeches that whilst passionate were never aggressive, rude or high in emotion as she felt this often impaired the cause, by having her for supper I hope I would learn how she did this as it’s not a skill set I possess!

Finally, as a group they would get on with each other and I am sure would have a memorable evening as they would have mutual respect for each other as well as love each other’s company!