Adelaide retiree, Marie Clarke, has notched up nearly 20 years as a volunteer at the Royal Adelaide Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit, a place that holds a special place in her heart.
Before volunteering at the hospital, Marie had visited the unit a number of times with her
husband Graham, who became very ill.
“My husband had a heart transplant nearly 25 years ago,” the Wisteria Grove Retirement Village resident said.
“Before his surgery, we had quite a lot of emergency trips to the Royal Adelaide and he ended up in intensive care. He actually got too sick to wait here in Adelaide and was sent to St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney for a transplant.
“The Royal really looked after him, and they also took care of my parents before they passed, so it’s nice to be able to give something back.”
Marie, 76, is sharing details about her volunteering journey ahead of National Volunteer Week, which runs from May 16-22, to encourage others to consider volunteering for a worthy cause.
As a visitors’ assistant in ICU, Marie does 3–4-hour volunteer shifts every Thursday at the hospital and one Friday night a month.
The hospital is a 20-minute drive from her unit at Wisteria Grove Retirement Village, where she has resided with Graham for the past two years.
It was after retiring from her pharmacy job that Marie decided she wanted to volunteer her time to a worthy cause.
As fate would have it, she came across an advertisement seeking people to volunteer as visitor assistants in the ICU at the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
The rewarding volunteer role involves being one of the first points of contact for people who need to see a loved one in the ICU.
“I ask them who they wish to see, how they are related to them and ask them some Covid questions. I think check with the nursing staff to see if it is a good time for the patient to have visitors,” Marie explained.
“Often the people who come in have nobody to talk to so hopefully myself and the other volunteers are at least a cheery face to talk to. It can be such a difficult time for them – their loved one could have left home happy and healthy in the morning and have had a traffic accident or a heart attack. Sometimes, their life has just been turned upside down.”
Wisteria Grove Village Manager Lee Ann Alejo said Marie was just one of several residents who enjoyed volunteer work.
“We have a number of residents at the village who volunteer their time to various causes or
organisations, including Meals on Wheels and the local lawn bowls club. One resident is a
Justice of the Peace and Treasurer of Friend of Prospect Library,” she said.
“Marie was also part of a group who gave up their time to make fabric masks for their fellow residents during the Covid pandemic.”
Marie is about to return to her volunteer role at the hospital following a short break to care for her ill husband during the pandemic. She says she can’t wait to get back.
“For me, it’s the satisfaction of doing something that might be really helpful to someone and also the great friendships I’ve made,” Marie said.
“I hope to volunteer at the hospital for a while yet.”
