Shropshire NHS awards: John Ore finds working with patients so rewarding

Today's nominee is John Ore, who only began volunteering two years ago.

Mr Ore, 79, began working at the Princess Royal Hospital after the death of his second wife, and says he does it to keep active, but finds working with patients at the hospital rewarding.

Mr Ore, a retired grandfather, helps the trust carry out the friends and family test and the patient experience questionnaire across nine wards by visiting the wards and asking patients about their experiences during their stay in hospital.

• Find out how you can vote in Saturday’s Shropshire Star.

• We will run down all five finalists and explain how to make your choice.

• Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust’s VIP Awards reward workers who help make a difference.

• The Shropshire Star has teamed up with the trust for the People’s Choice category.

• Finalists will be invited to an awards ceremony later this month.

Mr Ore, from Muxton, said: "I believe it is important to keep your mind and body active.

"On average I speak to about 50 to 60 patients every week. I chat to them and talk to them and usually I try to help them relax because we want to know how they are feeling and what their experiences have been on the ward.

"It is not a nice time for them at all, no-one wants to be in hospital and, if I can, I try to be a little bit of help to the health service and be someone that the people can talk to because some of them don't have visitors and the nurses are so busy they don't have as much time as they would like to stand and talk to people.

"But it is very rewarding I find, despite the bad press that the hospitals can get. I think of all the thousands of people I have spoken to and there are hardly any complaints.

"I would say 98 per cent of people say it is brilliant. The care they have had has been excellent. They are always complimentary about the staff and the care they have received."

Mr Ore also praised the work of the staff at the hospitals.

He said he feels "very privileged and honoured" to have been nominated in the awards.

David Burrows, a spokesman for Sath, said: "This is something that is done with great humor and, when needed, great compassion.

"But it is also vitally important as it allows the trust to see whether our patients are happy with the services we provide, or if there are areas where improvements can be made.

"John has devoted a lot of his own time to help improve the care of others and has become a valued member of the team.

"He is extremely popular with staff and patients and the amount of passion and commitment he displays is truly remarkable."

Mr Ore said: "The longer you keep active the longer, hopefully, it keeps you going and you will be less of a burden yourself on the health service in future.

"I like to keep going and doing things and I like meeting people."

Mr Ore said occasionally the people he speaks to have no visitors or nursing staff to give them company.

His time at the hospital therefore, as well as completing the questionnaires, offers them some company during their hospital stay. The Friends and Family test and the patient experience questionnaires that Mr Ore conducts ask people how they feel about the services they have used during their time in hospital.

The results then provide a way for hospitals to highlight good and bad patient experiences.

They are then used to allow health trusts to make changes to hospital services in the future.

The results of the questionnaire are published online for people to find out more about their local hospitals.

l Don't forget to see Saturday's Shropshire Star where you can find details of how to vote for the nominee you think should become the winner of the 2016 VIP Awards public choice.

The awards will be handed out to the winners at a ceremony which will be held on September 29 at the Park Inn, in Telford.