Phoebe, a volunteer at Assisi Hospice, tells us how she started volunteering. See how she has been making a difference for patients in need, and the joys and new perspectives which volunteering brings her.
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Watch more: https://www.asiaone.com/video
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00 It feels like one big family
00:02 because every time I step into the daycare
00:04 it's a very lively atmosphere.
00:05 Then you see the patients and the staff, the nurses
00:09 the therapists all laughing, joking with each other.
00:13 So I'm Pee Bee, I'm 20 years old this year
00:19 and I've been volunteering at RCC Hospice
00:22 specifically at its daycare since the end of 2020.
00:25 RCC is for terminally ill patients
00:27 so there are a few aspects to it, there's the daycare
00:30 there's the inpatient care as well as the home care.
00:32 So the one that I'm based in is mostly the daycare
00:35 which is for patients who have a prognosis of about a year.
00:39 So over there, I help out mainly with the van escort
00:42 which is bringing the patients from their homes to the hospice
00:45 or from the hospice back home.
00:47 Good morning, this is RCC. We're almost there.
00:49 Give us 10 minutes.
00:52 OK, thank you, bye bye.
00:54 [Music]
01:00 Good morning.
01:00 Hello.
01:02 [Music]
01:10 Good morning.
01:12 Do you want to come in?
01:14 [Music]
01:18 Wow, Uncle is so handsome today.
01:21 [Laughs]
01:22 Hello.
01:24 [Speaking Mandarin]
01:26 [Laughs]
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01:48 I just ensure the safety on the van
01:50 by simple things like putting on the seatbelts for them, taking their temperature to make sure they are well before coming to the centre,
01:56 and just helping them with their medical devices like oxygen.
01:59 oxygen.
02:00 Yeah, I'm ensuring it's smooth right for the patients.
02:26 It is quite challenging now because now I've started uni and uni's timetable is quite packed sometimes and it's very unpredictable.
02:35 At the start when I was in secondary school I had more time so I came down about once a week at least, I tried to.
02:42 But then I realised that instead of finding time to come down to volunteer, I have to make time for it.
02:47 So I'm more intentional with setting aside a certain amount of time per month,
02:52 maybe a few times, maybe two times a month to come down to the hospice to volunteer.
02:57 And I think that's helped me build a more regular schedule.
03:00 My interest in palliative care actually started when my gong gong was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer in 2017.
03:12 So there was discussion on maybe the possibility of hospice care, which piqued my curiosity in palliative care in Singapore.
03:19 So this led me to volunteer with and eventually I took over this student initiated volunteer project in my school at that time.
03:28 We did ad hoc activities at a daycare.
03:30 At the end of 2020 I decided that I wanted to be more proactive in terms of volunteering.
03:36 So I found out about RCC Hospice, the daycare centre and I decided to volunteer there.
03:41 [Music]
04:01 I think because volunteering at this type of high person to person interaction type of setting,
04:06 it's very hard for one person to make an impact on a huge group of people.
04:11 Because it's not like I am starting a charity where I get the money and donate to a large group of people,
04:17 and I'm limited with my time and my capacity.
04:20 But I do realise that even the smallest of impacts that I make on just that one patient is enough.
04:35 And I can tell that I do have some sort of impact on the patients given the type of interactions that we have,
04:42 the gratitude that they show me, which I'm also very grateful for.
04:45 I'm very privileged to receive and I think that's more than enough to justify the time and the effort that I make in coming down.
04:54 Hi Aunty Sylvia.
04:56 Hi Phoebe.
04:57 They are filming.
04:58 I know.
04:59 This is a bit scary.
05:00 No, no, not scary.
05:03 Not scary.
05:04 Okay, how's your food?
05:06 You took out all the mushrooms.
05:08 Interacting with the patients actually brings me so much joy and I live with my heart so much fuller.
05:15 It puts my problems into perspective as well.
05:18 Yeah, just talking to the patients really rejuvenates me.
05:21 So I don't think of it as a chore.
05:24 Rather a privilege, I'm just lucky to be able to do this.
05:31 So how I met Mrs Pereira is, one day I came to the daycare hospice.
05:37 I saw that she had crafts open for jewellery making and I'm quite interested in crafts of this sort.
05:43 So I went to have a conversation with her.
05:45 She's a very cool lady.
05:46 She's actually taught me to do paper quilling.
05:49 At the point of time where I met Mrs Pereira, I also got to know her husband, Mr Pereira.
05:54 So it was really sweet.
05:55 Both of them were in the hospice daycare together and you can see the interaction.
05:59 You can see the love and respect they have for each other.
06:03 So I think I got to know both of them better.
06:06 Mr Pereira is a very cheerful guy.
06:08 He charmed us all with his singing.
06:10 It was really a joy to be around them.
06:13 And at the point of time, I think I came almost every week.
06:16 So I managed to form that bond over time as well.
06:19 Unfortunately, Mr Pereira, his health worsened.
06:23 It was quite a difficult period for Mrs Pereira.
06:25 So knowing that, I did try my best to be there to support her.
06:29 So I did make a few visits to the hospital to visit Mr Pereira.
06:33 And then I just kept in contact, making sure that she was okay.
06:38 And I think that meant a lot to her, which also made me realise that
06:43 something that we might perceive as being small or might not make much of an impact
06:49 actually makes so much of a difference to the patient.
06:53 I think I am in a very privileged position to be able to volunteer with a hospice.
06:59 And I've met really a lot of amazing patients who have taught me so much about life,
07:05 about life and death, and about loving.
07:09 I also learnt a lot about myself.
07:11 So I volunteered at this hospice for quite a while.
07:16 And I think, as part of a hospice, death is something that's inevitable.
07:19 And I've seen my fair share of patients that have passed on.
07:25 But it never really gets easier.
07:27 It still hits me hard when I hear that a patient has left.
07:29 No matter how short or long I've known a patient,
07:32 because this is a hospice after all, the patients have come in with certain illnesses.
07:37 There are difficult times that they have to go through.
07:40 And I'm very lucky to be able to be there for them as a listening ear.
07:45 No matter how small the impact I'm making,
07:49 it really makes coming down, taking time and effort to volunteer so much more worth it.
07:56 [Music]