Trustee Profile – Deborah Podmore, Trustee for the North of England / BOSTU President
What’s the best thing about being an orthoptist?
I retired from clinical practice in 2021 but I always loved being in the clinic, I enjoyed the interaction with patients and feeling I was doing a worthwhile job. The eye and brain are fascinating organs and every patient is different.
What are your goals for the future?
I would like to be helpful for as long as I can. I have had a long career in orthoptics, TU representation and service management, so feel I have skills and knowledge that may help people.
How did you get started volunteering with BIOS?
I have always been a BOSTU rep so felt engaged with that element of BIOS, as I moved into management I found myself getting involved with a number of AHP committees and forums in which I represented Orthoptists in my region. I was asked to represent BIOS at one or two national projects and so it was a natural step to become a Trustee as I neared retirement but felt I still had something to offer and time to do it.
What does your role with BIOS involve?
I feel my primary role is acting as a conduit for information to and from the members in the North of England and the Board. A Trustee has a statutory responsibility to ensure all due process is properly followed and finances are properly managed, but also we are there to support the members in their working lives and ensure the profession develops and is recognised at all levels.
What is your proudest achievement in the role?
I have always been concerned that Trusts failed to recognise the importance of professional leadership for the smaller professions and had been battling locally and regionally, on becoming a Trustee I found a forum to develop a definition of professional leadership, which BIOS has now published and is now being used by a number of orthoptists to ensure they are recognised and properly remunerated.
What’s the best thing about volunteering for BIOS?
It is really interesting to see how the Society works and the wide range of projects in which it is engaged. It is hugely rewarding to feel you can support the Society and its members. Engaging with the Society teaches you a great deal about the bodies that affect how care is delivered in the UK, which I think is enormously helpful to anyone interested in a career in Eye services or AHP management.
People are put off volunteering because of their workloads but how have you made this work?
Of course, now that I am retired the pressures on my time are much less but when I was working I was able to fit additional voluntary activities in by managing my time very carefully, it is not easy and I was at times very reliant on extremely flexible and supportive colleagues. However, the benefits of getting involved for yourself and for your service can be immeasurable and I was always able to make this argument to my employers.
What’s the biggest challenge facing the orthoptic profession?
The biggest challenge is probably the same one we have always had … we are very small. Being small, we have to work harder and shout louder! We also have to ensure we are never left out of conversations about delivering and commissioning eye care.