Changes in Arthritis Care

Before Christmas I went to a rather sad Arthritis Care Meeting.

Arthritis Care, like many other charities are having financial trouble.  Charities rely on donations, legacies, sponsorship etc, and in this climate the donations coming in have dropped dramatically.

Our problem is that we're not a sexy charity, you can't die from it, and it's not a children’s charity, therefore not sexy.

A business plan has been drawn up which will hopefully pull the charity out of the deficit that we're in, but unfortunately some staff are to be made redundant.

Here is a link to a statement on the Arthritis Care website.

http://www.arthritiscare.org.uk/NewsRoom/Latestnewsstories/planning-for-2012

I'm obviously really upset for the staff members who work so hard to make a difference to the lives of so many people.  I feel sad that they, along with many others at this time, have had to go home and tell their families the news that they might not have a job soon.

Staff might rely on this charity financially but us volunteers rely on it emotionally too.  Arthritis Care has been in my life for such a long time I couldn't imagine not doing it.

Over the last 15 years Arthritis Care has been a massive part of my life and I have treated it like a job.

The best thing about volunteering when you have an illness is that everyone understands if you can't make it on a particular day because you’re not very well.  Volunteering gives me a sense of pride in the knowledge that I am helping support people in community when they’re struggling, something which I know most rheumatology staff at our local hospital value.

I know I would be sad if this all ended and I strongly believe that the NHS will have to pick up the fallout from patients who can't get to talk with anyone with living with arthritis or a musculoskeletal condition.  I believe that if patients don’t have anyone to talk to, who understands their situation, then their health might suffer.  People with any long term condition need to learn coping strategies or 'tools' to manage their condition effectively.  Also some people don’t like to talk to family and friends as they don’t want to upset them or they feel like they’re moaning.

I hope this isn't the end of the work I do, maybe it's a new beginning.  Whatever happens I'm always ready to help people with this condition, whether it is in person, at the branch meetings, on the Arthritis Care forum or on twitter.

And lastly, I would like to thank everyone, staff and volunteers for all their hard work and dedication in helping people with arthritis continue with their lives.   I hope the charity will continue to give others as much support as it's given me.