Stroke Care Information and Awareness session for carers

Stroke is very common and more and more frequently people are surviving and going on to regain a great deal of their independence and good health.  There is no doubt that the carer plays a huge roll in helping the person they care for become as well as possible for as long as possible.  In partnership with Chest, Heart and Stroke Training Coordinator Joanne Graham Fife Carers Centre is offering  free to attend information sessions for carers. This session gives carers information about a Stroke and how it may affect someone, some of the problems you may encounter in your caring role and how you can help the person you care for as well as possible for as long as possible.  It also gives carers the opportunity to learn from each other as they swap hints and tips learnt from their own experiences.
These sessions will take place as follows:
Wednesday 17 August 2011 6.30pm - 9.30pm at the City Hotel in Dunfermline. 
Thursday 15 September 2011 1pm - 4pm in the Boardroom at Cameron Hospital.
There are still places available for both sessions so call now to book your place on 01592 642999.

Goodbye to Mary! - A fond farewell.

After 15 years in the hot seat as Fife Carers Centre Manager,  Mary Stewart  has decided the time is right  to retire and she will be finishing work at the end of September.  As is often the case choosing the right time to retire has not been an easy decision to make and it has prompted a fair amount of consideration and reflection on her time with us.  Whilst she was in reflective mood we asked her a few questions. We asked her about her start with the Centre – not everything went quite according to plan! “I started with the Fife Carers Centre in October 1996 and promptly broke my foot and spent the first few weeks with my foot in plaster. The next year I broke my wrist and the year after that I broke my elbow ice-skating with young carers! Mhairi and Cindy used to joke about my annual break but fortunately it seems to have stopped now!”.   

How have things changed for carers during your time with Fife Carers Centre? 

When we started everyone thought that we were a Careers Centre and phoned us looking for jobs. No one knew what we were talking about when we spoke about carers. Now everyone acknowledges how important carers are and what huge contribution carers make to our society. We still need to get across to carers themselves that they are making this contribution and deserve support.

Are there things that particularly stand out in your memory?

Mary and Princess Anne share a moment

“I have so many vivid memories of my time at the Fife Carers Centre, happy and sad. I remember the carers, such as John Brady our former Vice Convenor, who was so much a part of developing the Centre in the early days. John sadly died but whilst he was a member of our Board.  John used to go around browbeating any carer he met into taking one of our cards and to get in touch – which many of them then did. The two visits that Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal made to the Centre obviously stand out as great honours as well as great fun and getting the news that we had won the two grants from the Big Lottery Fund were fantastic moments. I was very proud when we moved across the road and in to the new Centre in 2007.  We were able to build up such a great team and take on so many new pieces of work. I am always “ a wee chuffette” (as my son used to say) when people say they have heard about the Centre and the good work that we do.”

What will you miss about working with Fife Carers Centre?

“I am going to miss all the people. I‘ll miss the carers and the people in other organisations that we work with and I’ll really miss the team in the Centre. They give me a hard time and frequently tease me but they are great and work so hard for the Centre and carers across Fife. The members of the Board of Directors are part of that team and I have been very grateful for their support too.

”What are you looking forward to in your retirement?

“I am a bit apprehensive about who I will be when I am not Mary Stewart of Fife Carers Centre but I think that my husband is even more apprehensive about me being around and disturbing his routines! I’m really looking forward to jaunts out and about with him and making the most of our bus passes! I’m also looking forward to having time to go for walks, go swimming, reading all the books that I have been meaning to read and spending more time with my young granddaughter and her older sister. I’ll be keeping up my involvement with carers through the Coalition of Carers in Scotland and perhaps in time I will find other ways of being involved. I’ve been so lucky for the past fifteen years to have had a great job that allowed me to feel that I was making even a little bit of difference to the lives of carers.”