Join the Voluntary Army!

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If you live in or near a big city or other major conurbation, you will have a wide choice of ways to contribute - both to your own CV and to the volunteer effort. There will be a variety of hospitals, both general and specialist, homes for older people, special schools, day centres for people with learning disabilities and community centres.

Depending upon your chosen career you can make a relevant contribution. For example, if you want to be a community nurse or GP you can volunteer to assist in a day centre or local clinic - it may only be making tea or setting out furniture, but it will give you valuable experience of patient contact. If you want to move into a branch of mental health or into learning disability you can volunteer to assist with trips, activities or befriending schemes. If your interest is in acute medicine, many charities that support particular conditions can give you details of how to volunteer to support patients with their particular disease or syndrome.

However, in more remote or rural areas there may be fewer options. Services may be concentrated in one urban area and travelling to this centre may not fit in with your work, study or caring responsibilities. So you may have to think laterally.

Many healthcare-related charities offer working holidays for those prepared to act as a holiday carer for people with a variety of conditions or disabilities. You will need to make a small contribution to or cover the basic cost of your holiday, but it can be a great way of combining a holiday with gaining care experience. Many church or other faith-based organisations offer outreach work - often at weekends or in the evenings - to people who are ageing or in poor health. Often, you don't have to be a member of the faith community concerned to join in and help.