My year as a Just Treatment volunteer

This blog was written by Just Treatment volunteer Kopiga.

As 2020 draws to a close, I wanted to reflect on my experiences as a Just Treatment volunteer in what has been a very busy but empowering year.

I joined as a volunteer during the first lockdown, just as the idea for an NHS New Deal was taking shape. In the “listening” phase that took place during the summer, Just Treatment volunteers were asked to interview people about their experiences with the NHS, lockdown and COVID-19. Collectively, we spoke to people in every one of the 650 UK constituencies.

“I realised through my conversations that people wanted to be heard, but most never expected to be listened to.”

I found interviewing people during that difficult period to be a really enlightening experience. These conversations gave me an insight into the experiences and thoughts of people I would never have met or talked to otherwise. It was valuable to step outside my bubble of thought and talk to people who had completely different thoughts to me, as we still connected over the need to protect and improve the NHS.

I realised through my conversations that people wanted to be heard, but most never expected to be listened to. Just Treatment gave them a platform where their experiences could be used to improve the experience of others in the future. We all felt very proud to be contributing to this.

After the listening phase, Just Treatment analysed the responses to find emerging themes and shared perspectives. From the conversations, key topic areas were identified and volunteers were invited to facilitate the participatory workshops which aimed to further develop these ideas into more concrete demands. These workshops were really inspiring and empowering spaces, and once they ended I felt a strange sense of loss. I had loved meeting and talking to people who had stories and input to share - I had loved learning from them. 

However, though the workshops had ended, our community of Just Treatment volunteers and staff had grown stronger and more connected - and our work on the NHS New Deal didn’t stop there. Just Treatment volunteers were then consulted on the demands development and other aspects of the campaign planning, and I am so excited to see this transformative vision for our NHS launched in late January! 

This year I was also given the opportunity to represent Just Treatment at the recent hand-in of We Own It’s petition about protecting the NHS in any future trade deal. We delivered the petition to the House of Lords before their vote, and we were able to meet (in a COVID-safe manner!) with a peer, Lord Bird, who accepted the petition signed by more than three hundred thousand people. The House voted to protect the NHS, and now the House of Commons must decide if they will. So that campaigning continues with hope.

Through my experiences as a Just Treatment volunteer, I no longer feel as powerless as I did when lockdown began and all our lives were turned upside down by the virus. I feel blessed to have participated in the thoughtful creation of something that can positively impact so many of us, and can't wait to see what the new year brings for the new deal and our other healthcare campaigns.