Search
Dr Peter Goyder - Trustee St Peters Hospice. Read article...
Dated: 6-Jan-14
This article has been written by the Bristol Post
Having been a GP in St George for 20 years, Peter Goyder was well aware of the work of St Peter's Hospice.
But for the last year he has had a more direct role with the city's hospice charity as one of its trustees.
Dr Goyder already has experience of sitting on health boards, having been involved with NHS Bristol and now the city's clinical commissioning group. But now he also has input into the Brentry-based charity.
As a GP with 16,000 patients, including more than 2,500 over the age of 75, Dr Goyder is involved with the care of many people with cancer.
That means he knows how important it is for patients to get the support they need at the end of their life and where the hospice can step in.
He said: "We are the only generalists left and we are responsible for our individual patients and all their healthcare needs, whether they are being looked after just by us, or by us with the hospital or hospice or other health and social care.
"For the older population and younger patients, having the ability to get really good support for the complex conditions is important.
"We also in general practice really value the St Peter's specialist community nurses because they are able to give more time than our district nurses and they have that specialism around end-of-life care in symptom management and medication, and in psychological support."
Dr Goyder said that the hospice charity's education of health staff is well known among his colleagues in the profession.
He said: "The vast majority of my colleagues have had at least one course at St Peter's at some point."
Dr Goyder decided to get involved with the charity after talking to another of the trustees, who suggested it might be something he would like to do.
Dr Goyder said: "St Peter's is so important to Bristol that it felt like the right next step to take.
"My role with the clinical commissioning group is about having the oversight.
"But the role of the trustee is very much about being in the background making sure that the management team has got the strategy, direction and resources to do what it needs to do, and sometimes to do the challenging over what is happening.
"We are there to let the management team do their job so service staff can do theirs."
And Dr Goyder said that his background as a doctor and in NHS management gives him the understanding to challenge the charity in terms of what the health service is looking like.
He said: "My role with the clinical commissioning group means I understand the city a lot more and have got links with clinicians and managers.
"It does create a conflict of interest sometimes and I am really clear in meetings both at the hospice and with the clinical commissioning group and declare my interests, and in discussions around end-of-life care at board level."
He said the St Peter's trustees have a broad range of expertise with those in the legal and commercial professions and different parts of the NHS, led by Robert Bourns, the son of two of the charity's founders – Joan and Herbert.
But Dr Goyder said there is always a need for new trustees so that the board represents Bristol.
The trustees meet quarterly as a formal board.
But members also get involved in various other committees through the year, such as medical committees and attending fundraising events.
He said that all trustees go through the same induction as every other person who joins the charity, whether they are volunteers or nurses.
Dr Goyder said: "The great thing about induction is that everybody joining St Peter's does the same induction.
"I think it is really important to understand how St Peter's works.
"I am spending time with medical director Dr Carole Dacombe shadowing her to understand in more detail.
"One of the important things is to support the clinicians in terms of how far they can go in providing care."
Dr Goyder said he feels proud to be involved with an organisation that is held in such high esteem by the people of Bristol.
He said: "Most people in Bristol have heard of St Peter's – it really is the hospice for Bristol.
"I am really proud to be able to do this role and be able to give something back from my experience because I believe that St Peter's is really good.
"It is a safe place – and in the world these days, and particularly in healthcare, you have to be able to demonstrate that you are safe and have management systems."