Louise Johns: Being part of the Leg Club team

I started at Activa five years ago and I see myself as part of the leg club team because we like to get involved with the patients and the volunteers and the nurses so we're all working together and there's a lovely social atmosphere going on between all these people offering support to wherever it's needed so if it's a patient that needs an arm to hold on to, to get from the chair to walk to the nurse or a bag that needs to be fetched because they can't do so. If a nurse asks me to get something for them to help them out then I'll be happy to do that. I do think that the products are used in the right place for the right patients and at the right time because it's something that we're looking at to move the patient care forward. It's something that's key in the nurse's mind to get best patient outcomes, successful outcomes and gear all of the products for each individual patient, something I feel very strongly about. The lead club provides education as there are leaflets in the lead club and the nurses will also ask us for our patient leaflets, so we will provide those where they're needed and if there are things that the patients want that we don't have available at the time, we will go and find and source them for them and help them out with that, so yes. I think lead clubs are unique in the sense that they allow patients who are isolated in their own homes to socialise and be in an environment where it may be that one visit a week and there may be that only interaction will be with a nurse or other people within the club they can talk to. For that I think it's valuable because it can be a lonely place for patients without.