National forum to celebrate volunteers contribution to seniors’ health

Volunteers from around Australia are meeting at a national forum in
Sydney on May 9 and 10 to celebrate and share their experiences as
Senior Peer Educators.

The volunteers are recruited and trained by Council on the Ageing (COTA) organisations to deliver free medicines information sessions in
partnership with National Prescribing Service Limited (NPS).

Since 2004, 271 volunteer peer educators have conducted 2006 sessions with more than 46,632 senior Australians.

NPS funds the program as part of its wider initiative to improve decision making about medicines with a focus on seniors.

Volunteering Australia indicated 81% of volunteers surveyed would
personally appreciate having their volunteer work recognised in the form of opportunities to develop their skills.

According to Sue Hendy, executive director, COTA Victoria, and Ian
Yates, chief executive, COTA South Australia, “this national forum sets
a new benchmark for recognising the volunteers’ contributions. As far as we know this is the first time volunteers have been flown in from all
around Australia to learn from each others’ experiences and further
develop their skills.”

The peer educator approach was chosen as seniors have valuable life
experiences which enable them to identify, empathise and be able to pass on important messages to their peers within the community.

Medication is taken by 70% of the population in any two week period
increasing to over 90% for older people. In Australia, more than 140,000
people are hospitalised every year as a result of potentially
preventable medication-related problems.