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The 2022 Palliative Care Volunteer Managers Conference wrapped up earlier this week in the crisp, cool air of Orange in central western NSW. The theme was “Developing Our Practice” and didn’t we all have a great time doing just that.

While illness struck sadly preventing some delegates from attending at the last minute, we still managed to make the most of our time together. As a group, this was the first chance we had to see each other in person for quite some time. Everyone really enjoyed the opportunity to make new connections and strengthen older ones.

There was a broad mix of more experienced and newer Volunteer Managers in the group which lent a great diversity of perspectives to the conversations and activities. Nothing is quite as good as the opportunity to connect with each other face to face.

Our opening speaker was Louise Brown, Aboriginal Project Officer for Western NSW LHD, who drove nearly 8 hours from Bourke to present to us on Sorry Business. Next up was Selen Akinci from PICAC who spoke to us about how we can better educate our volunteers on the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse communities.

Managers put their heads together in a very practical and powerful two-part workshop, firstly identifying common areas of concern within their practice and then finding solutions together by sharing their wealth of knowledge and experience.

We finished Day One with some important self-care, giving our left brains a well-needed rest and letting our creative sides shine by engaging in a SoulCollage® activity led by Carolyn Wilkinson.

On Day Two Carrie Wallis from Enlighten U Solutions via The Centre for Volunteering taught us strategies for conflict management and resolution and Cathy Banks from NALAG shared her insights on how we can better support our volunteers to cope with grief and loss and build resilience.

The conference was a resounding success, with great feedback from delegates. I hope we see attendance continue to grow with each successive event.

We now look forward to begin planning the 2023 Palliative Care Volunteers Conference. If you have suggestions for speakers or venues, please get in touch.