Volunteer with us
Our voluntary service is a fantastic asset to PAHT. We are very proud of our 90 dedicated volunteers who are highly motivated and support our people, our patients and their families in a variety of roles, including:
- Compassionate care (namaste) volunteer role
- Meet and greeters
- Ward support
- Emergency department support
- Administration support
- Butterflies
- Patient panel
- Stoma support
- Pets as therapy
Our volunteers support our people (in clinical and non-clinical roles) in providing exceptional care and experiences for our patients and their families. We require a long-term commitment (12 months) of four hours a week from our volunteers.
We welcome volunteers from all backgrounds, aged 17 and over, who are compassionate, independent and enthusiastic. In return, we provide a wide range of exciting opportunities to meet others, learn new skills and most importantly, to make a difference to the lives of our patients and our people.
For more information or to discuss volunteering opportunties at PAHT, please email: paht.volunteers@nhs.net.
Take part in research
We are passionate about the local population having access to new, innovative treatment with all patients having the right to take part in clinical research.
Our research and development team delivers cutting edge research, enabling new models of care to improve patient safety and care, both in the present and for the future. They research into a variety of health conditions ranging from rheumatoid arthritis to new surgical procedures.
Patients and the public are vital to success of research in the NHS. Without patients volunteering to take part in research, we would not be able to develop the investigations for the use of the latest medicines and medical devices, developing less invasive tests for the diagnosis of cancer or looking at the prevention of health problems through the collection of questionnaires and/or blood samples.
We cover all aspects of clinical research, whilst keeping patients safe, through setting up studies and applying all nationally recognised regulatory approvals.
Our charities
The Princess Alexandra Hopsitals Charity
We hold a number of charitable fundraisers throughout the year; you can get involved by attending, contributing to and supporting these events.
The Princess Alexandra Hospital's Charity (registered charity no. 1054745) supports patients, staff and visitors at the trust. Our charity is dedicated to enhancing patient care, purchasing special equipment, improving facilities and investing in vital research which is beyond the scope or limits of the NHS.
Our charity supports thousands of patients, staff and visitors every year. Donations are sometimes made as a 'thank you' to staff, in memory of a loved one or simply to acknowledge excellent service. By supporting our charity, you will be helping to enhance services for future generations.
You can find more information on our fundraisers and donate to the charity via our JustGiving page.
If you would like to find out more about the work we are doing please take a look at our Twitter and Facebook page.
The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust - Breast Unit at St Margaret's Hospital
The Breast Unit is one of the largest breast cancer clinical trials facilities in Hertfordshire, Essex and North London. The charity in has raised over £3 million, which has been used to purchase specialist equipment, introduce new initiatives and fund further research into the breast cancer. We continue to raise money for breast cancer clinical trials in order that we can improve understanding and help find new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat different kinds of breast cancer.
We are based at Princess Alexandra Hospital, Harlow and St Margaret's Hospital, Epping where approximately 350 new patients are diagnosed with breast cancer each year. Of these, 10% would benefit from treatments that are not standard on the NHS. The charity hopes to fund these treatment options and train specialists in providing the new treatments. The charity wishes to raise sufficient funds to build a central cancer unit covering diagnosis and treatment to ensure continuity in care. We bid nationally to be one of the main centres for conducting breast cancer trials and for the patients in the local area. This means that they could have access to investigational medicines that previously were only available when participating in clinical trials in hospitals based in central London.
Find out more about the Breast unit charity at St Margaret's.