As a volunteer, from walking through the door at St Ann’s you experience great warmth and friendship from everyone.Betty Murphy, St Ann’s volunteer

All quotations are used with permission.

There is nothing like getting a makeover from Marilyn in her smart little salon for helping patients feel much better.

Monday, January 09, 2012

Indeed, in some ways her job as hairdresser at Heald Green is just as important as the clinical roles performed by the doctors and nurses.

Every day Marilyn joins key staff for a briefing on patients and their various conditions so she is aware of their medical background even before she gets to work with a pair of scissors.

“It’s important I get a general picture of how to handle a patient,“ said Marilyn, who has worked as a hairdresser for 43 years, the last decade at the hospice.

“Patients want to look as good as they can and might say they feel better just because they’ve had their hair done. It can cheer them up and put a smile on their face.

“The body contact of washing their hair can also have a relaxing effect. You can sometimes sense that they’re on edge about something but once they open up they’ll tell you things which can then be used to help them.

“It could be they need occupational therapy, physiotherapy, social or even sometimes psychiatric assistance.”

Bed-ridden patients unable to get near a basin get their hair washed using a special shampoo cap while clients who have lost hair due to chemotherapy treatment get Marilyn’s expert help and advice on looking after the scalp and ways of encouraging hair growth after treatment.

She also cuts wigs and sells head scarves and gives advice on hair colouring after treatment, based on medical instructions.

Understandably, health care and hygiene are always a priority. For example, a patient may be ultra sensitive to the heat from a hairdryer, or certain hair care products.

Marilyn, a mother of three, was 60 in December but there is no sign of her joining husband Peter, a former police officer, in retirement just yet.

“I like the job too much to give it up and I’d like to think I’ve got an empathy with the patients. I suppose it’s a life skill developed over many years.”

The jolly smile on Marilyn’s face has much to do with her popularity among patients and fellow staff. The hairdressing and manicure service she provides is free to in-patient and day care patients as part of the St Ann’s experience.

Marilyn herself was struck by breast cancer when she was 37 so she is well qualified in so many different ways to cope with the challenge of helping patients look good and feel better.

“Because a hair-do for both men and women can alter a patient’s appearance significantly, the knock-on effect is that visitors like close family and friends often comment on how much better the patient looks. Because the patient is flattered by people, the psychological effect can be immense and make an all-round positive result.”