Volunteer Pamela receives ‘Volunteer of the Year’ award

A volunteer at St Nicholas Hospice Care has spoken of her delight after receiving a top national award.

Pamela Bailey, a dedicated member of the Hospice team for ten years, was crowned the ‘Volunteer of the Year’ at the International Journal of Palliative Nursing Awards at a glittering event in London.

Pamela said: “I was very surprised but honoured to be nominated for such an important award. “When they read my name out as the winner, I was completely flummoxed and emotional. I see this as an award for the Hospice and also the whole volunteer movement. It is nice that volunteers have been recognised on a wider scale.”

Although the prestigious award paid tribute to Pamela’s overall achievements at the Hospice, it also recognised her work as the “bedrock” of the organisation’s Headstart service – a free and confidential programme for people suffering from hair loss as a result of treatment for a life-threatening condition.

Pamela has now begun to extend the service into West Suffolk Hospital’s Macmillan Oncology and Cancer Information Unit to take hospice care into an acute setting.

Proud work colleagues at the Hospice paid tribute to Pamela describing her as an “excellent ambassador for the Hospice and for hospice care”.

Vivien Anderson, Voluntary Services Manager, said: “The entire Hospice is delighted for Pamela. She is an excellent ambassador for volunteering but she never looks for recognition for what she does. This is a fantastic and well-deserved accolade.”

Jackie Saunders, Clinical Services Director, added: “Pamela brings wisdom, patience and a real sense of making the most of the moment to all who she meets. She embodies the best in hospice work.”

Away from the Hospice, Pamela is a member of the Churchgate Sinfonia, the Suffolk Sinfonia, the Wolsey Orchestra in Ipswich and she is also connected to the West Suffolk Young Musician of the Year.