What is your name, how long have you been working for Help & Care, and what is your role?
My name is Terry Deane, Social Prescribing Link Worker. I have been working at Help & Care for 5 years plus now.
Why did you decide to join Help & Care?
I joined Help & Care to give back and to help build a local community support network.
What does a normal day look like for you at work?
Not sure a normal day exists, to be honest, as we work with individual personalities, but it’s a mix of ongoing telephone sessions, triaging and introducing face-to-face to community support.
What inspires you the most about your work?
Working with all the amazing community groups and the individuals who run them. Seeing how they also support our clients is inspiring. I’d love to introduce them all to you in a Part 2 video.
What word would your team use to describe you?
I asked them. They said wise, knowledgeable, calm and humorous. My wife was in the background listening and shaking her head.
What’s your favourite memory from working here?
A 92-year-old client, F. Referred by a nurse. The nursing home didn’t know what to do with him as he was fading away and thoroughly depressed at being surrounded by dying people all talking about their ailments. I managed to get him down to the café at Immanuel Church. He told me about his life. He was passionate and articulate, but none of the groups there were quite the right fit for him. I asked him what his dream was. He burst into tears. Not the reaction I’d hoped for, but he said, ‘Don’t worry; it’s just that no one’s asked me that for over 50 years.’ His dream was to buy a plot of land and live sustainably. Ambitious. I took him to the Grounded Community, a local gardening charity, the following week. He got lost. I found him and introduced him to Sharon, who runs the volunteers. Two weeks later I called her to see if they were ok with the referral and to see if he managed to go again. She said, ‘Is he ok? ‘Oh, he’s more than ok; he’s amazing. We’ve adopted him!’
How do you like to spend your time outside of work?
Walking, swimming, cycling, adventures with family and friends, eating and drinking, football, rugby, music and art, live and otherwise.
Why should someone want to work at Help & Care?
Good people, good causes, good work.