Article contributed by Anneke Driessen-de Vries.
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Since 2007, the BNI Palliative Care Scholarship Programme has supported hospice staff members across the country to complete postgraduate study in their specialty areas
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Over the years, BNI New Zealand has donated over $137,000 to fully fund the programme.
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Anneke Driessen-de Vries is one of the recipients of the BNI scholarship this year. She is very appreciative of BNI’s support of her and her community. This is her story.
This year, I was delighted to be the recipient of a BNI scholarship. I have been involved in supervising social work students at Waipuna Hospice and enjoy this challenge. As a Social Worker for Waipuna Hospice, my expertise lies in the knowledge of how to connect people who are dying and their families with people, resources and services that can help.
Anneke Driessen-de Vries, Social Worker for Waipuna Hospice
The needs of one family alone can be incredibly complex. Sometimes three generations will be living together under the same roof. Mum will be working full time to cover the mortgage, while caring for a dying parent and looking after children too.
My role is to take a broad view and consider, how can we help this family? What are the most pressing needs we need to address? What services are available to them? Who can we connect them with?
With the support received from BNI, I am studying towards a Postgraduate Diploma in Health and Social Science. The paper I’m working on this year really appeals to me because it’s inter-professional – collaborating with people from different disciplines, and even different sectors of healthcare. It aims to deepen our understanding of how we can work together to best meet the needs of our clients and our communities. It’s so enriching to be able to look at situations from different perspectives – it’s a good way to get a helicopter view on my current practice.
The support of BNI New Zealand is very much appreciated. Financially it makes a big difference, but it’s more than that; it’s also the acknowledgement that the work we do at hospice is important and valued. I am hugely grateful for their support.
Anneke Driessen-de Vries, Social Worker for Waipuna Hospice
