Friends of St Cross Volunteer Bob Tooze was one of the first to receive an award when the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust (UHCW) re-launched its World Class Colleague recognition scheme in August 2021.
The nomination process is open to members of the public and staff to truly celebrate everyone at Team UHCW including members of staff from ISS, Vinci and the team of Volunteers.
Bob leads a team of some 25 Friends Volunteer Ward Admin assistants, supporting the ward clerks and nursing staff in the wards at the Hospital of St Cross. The volunteers have helped to relieve the pressure on the hospital staff since the pandemic struck and the team has had to deal with many changes of procedures as well as an increase in telephone calls from patient’s relatives who are not able to visit their loved ones.
Bob was recognised for the great pride he takes in the work of the team and the difference they make to ease the pressure on the staff on the wards. His commitment is such that, when he suffered an injury to his ankle and could not drive, he hired a mobility scooter so that he could continue to come in to volunteer! The volunteer team on Hoskyn Ward was one of the first to be established and they were nominated as a team for the same award as Bob received!
When the call came to expand the Ward Admin service to Cedar Ward he jumped into action and immediately went to the ward to discover more of what was needed. He contacted several volunteers to help there and he came into St Cross to personally train the new volunteers at the weekend, when they are most needed.
Willy Goldschmidt, Chairman of the Friends of St Cross, said “Bob and the team truly deserved this recognition. But so do the rest of the 120 volunteers at St Cross who make a real difference for the staff and patients attending the Hospital. We are keen to recruit more volunteers as the demand for our services is expanding and we need to give some of our hard working volunteers a well-earned breather! If you are interested to learn more please download our Application Pack”
Photo: Bob Tooze received his World Class Colleague Award from Andy Hardy, CEO of UHCW, and Dame Stella Manzie, Chair of UHCW.