Understanding the impact of “hand-holding volunteers” providing theatre support during surgery – The patient perspective
6th June, 2022
Most eye operations are carried out under local anaesthetic which means patients are conscious during the procedure. Friends of Moorfields volunteers can accompany patients into theatre, provide them with reassurance and hold their hand during the operation.
One of the ways Friends of Moorfields volunteers improve the patient experience is by giving patients the option to have a volunteer hold their hand during surgery.
Many patients are anxious and frightened, and some do not have family with them; the volunteers have a vital role to help keep patients calm and make them feel supported and not alone in what can be a stressful experience.
The handholding programme is available at our theatre departments at City Road, and we hope to expand to the network sites soon.
We knew anecdotally that this improved the service for patients, but are now delighted to share a new report following the survey of around 300 patients.
