Interviewer

So, first of all, could I ask your name?

Megan Jolly

Megan Jolly.

Interviewer

Thank you. And could I ask how old you are, Megan?

Megan Jolly

86.

Interviewer

Thank you. And could I ask which group we are talking about today?

Megan Jolly

Deeside Hospital, Community League of Friends

Interviewer

Thank you. So in life, what first got you involved in volunteering?

Megan Jolly

Well, all my life from childhood, from primary school, I remember going round the farms in the area in the village, and collecting money for the missionaries, in distant lands. We called it lands, but missionaries… And then that went on for a few years until I left school, and then went to nursing. So that was my volunteering first. And then during a period of nurse training, I obviously didn’t do any volunteering.

Interviewer

And, so where did you train to be a nurse?

Megan Jolly

I did my general nurse training in Bangor, North Wales and my midwifery in Chester and Wrexham.

Interviewer

Okay.

Megan Jolly

And then I got married in 1964 from Chester. I was the midwife there, and then came to this area. And, first of all, I didn’t work because I had children, and I volunteered with the Ladies Circle and Round Table. And that was a tremendous amount of work for volunteering because we were doing jumble sales in those days, and strawberry teas, and coffee mornings, and raising money for the community. So that was my first recollection. And then when they became short of midwives in Mancot, they asked me would I help them out, which I did. And that time, if I remember rightly, I went there in 1978 and must have been about 1985 that they started their own League of Friends.

 

Megan Jolly

And after about three years, we had a new manager, and she asked would I take over the Treasurer’s job because they were getting a little bit mixed up with the work. So I carried on that until we left to go to the new hospital, that was being built in 1991, well we opened in 1992 in Deeside, and we were fortunate to have the Queen to open it. And that was a memorable day. Taught us a lot.

Interviewer

So did you meet the Queen?

Megan Jolly

Yes, I was introduced, because at that time I was the Manager of the hospital. So I met the Queen and my husband was a medical doctor for the hospital. So he met her. She comes up to us, and I was surprised in, there was only 25 minutes allowed for the visit, and there was spot on so she went to every department, met them, and the League of Friends were invited. So yes, it was a good day. So at that time we must have had quite a number of members in the League of Friends. There must be about 26 members, and they were hardworking. We had enormous concerts, were very popular. We used to try and have a concert twice a year. And then we had a summer fair, and Christmas fair. So all those events were quite involved, and quite a lot of work.

 

Interviewer

So lots of fundraising. Yes. What sort of thing can you remember that the fundraising paid for?

Megan Jolly

Well we had a scanner. When we went to Deeside, we wanted a scanner because there wasn’t one in North Wales. So we sent flyers to all the different companies and we raised quite a lot of money. But I think it was only about £26,000 then, wasn’t it? Subsequently we had to buy one every five years. They can only take so many images.  And then we sent it, fortunately, abroad, one of the churches locally, took it abroad, and they carry on using it. But unfortunately, in every five years, they’ve increased. And the last one we paid, £60,000 and it’s due anytime now. But what we felt all the new hospitals that were built after, they were supplied by the Health Board with a scanner. But it was lovely how much, you know, money that was raised by the companies. So that was a good thing to do.

 

Interviewer

That sounds really helpful. And if somebody’s listening to this and they’re thinking that they should get involved with volunteering at the hospital, what would you say to encourage them?

Megan Jolly

It’s a great satisfactory job. Job satisfaction, you’d call it, really? Because it is lovely to think that we are able to make the patients more comfortable with the supplies. You know, we’ve been asked for chairs for people to get out easier… Beds, we’ve supplied. Dental chair, we’ve had to have a new Dental chair and, it’s not only the ward, but it was the physio department, and the OT that we provided, and things to enable them to, after stroke, help patients with their speech, and things like that. They were extra over, and above what the Health Authority could provide.

Interviewer

Yes. Yes.

Megan Jolly

They don’t need handling as much as we did when I started. It was purely lifting up. And the same, you know, with the bathing. Manual handling was taught and carefully implemented.

Interviewer

There’s more aides nowadays?

Megan Jolly

Absolutely. Yes.

Interviewer

They’re thinking about the nurses’ backs, aren’t they?

Megan Jolly

That’s right. And I think of the patients that must have suffered when we pulled on their shoulders.

Interviewer

Absolutely. Yes.

Megan Jolly

Yes they did. But so little things like that. We even provided curtains, and blinds, and things, you know, whatever they needed really. And then, in Deeside, we built a conservatory, and we did that in Mancot as well for the patients. But in Deeside we built an extension to the day hospital, and provided furnishings, and things for that.

Interviewer

So somewhere for patients to go and sit with their families?

Megan Jolly

When they were in the day hospital.

Interviewer

That’s very nice.

Interviewer

Yes. Okay. That’s been really helpful, and it’s given me a really lovely insight. When you knew I was coming to see you today. Is there anything you wanted to tell me that you haven’t had the chance to say yet?

Megan Jolly

No, I don’t think so. Well, as I said outside, well still in the community, the only one I did was a school governor. Okay. On the special needs school. So I was there for about six years. Well they used to ask me about risk assessments, and things like that, so, but the school closed, and we moved to Flint, so I retired from that. But that just makes an eyeopener to see how the teachers cope with special needs children.

Interviewer

Absolutely, yes.

Megan Jolly

But now, I’m just a member of Deeside League of Friends, because my life has changed completely with my vision. And so I’m just at the meeting that I can join, I’m not able to help with the cake stalls or anything, because I just can’t bake. So yes, life has changed a lot since.

Interviewer

Well, well I’m sure they’re delighted to have you there, so thank you ever so much. Thank you.