The Editor's Letter

With the summer in full swing it seems a fine time to look back on the events and achievements that have taken place over the last year at Caswell Clinic. As usual there have been many trips, groups, celebrations, charity fundraisers, new faces and a few fond farewells taking place!

Notable events this year included our trip to the Koestler exhibition in London, with patients and staff enjoying the opportunity to see works of art, sculptures and poetry along with some of the sights of London. Find out more about this exciting exhibition on pages 20-21.

As the lazy summer days stretch ahead of us it’s important to take time to relax and enjoy all that summer has to offer, but keep in mind the next Pen Y Fan challenge is just around the corner! Last year saw the first of our Pen Y Fan expeditions with a team from Caswell taking on the highest peak in South Wales. For more information see pages 14-15.
Since the last edition of the Chat the clinics’ commitment to fundraising has been a source of pride for many, with patients and staff contributing their time and efforts to raise money for various good causes. Last year there was a highly successful shoe box appeal, with staff and patients getting involved to bring a little festive joy to those in need. The fundraising is set to continue with Penarth ward holding a Macmillan Coffee Morning on the 29th September.

Along with fundraising, voluntary work has always been at the heart of clinic life with this year being no exception. This edition of the Chat captures our commitment to volunteering with dog walking, Keep Wales Tidy and Food bank articles along with an interview on page 7 with Kris about his voluntary role.

Day to day Caswell continues to be a hive of activity with social evenings, OT and AC groups, ward-based activities, community leaves and the odd summer BBQ. The achievements of staff and patients this year were reflected upon in the annual recognition event. As always there was an excellent turnout and everyone involved had the chance to reflect on another productive year!

Over the last year we’ve welcomed many new staff and patients and said fond farewells to some firm friends whose contribution and commitment to clinic life will be greatly missed. We will shortly be bidding farewell to another member of the Caswell team, Activity Coordinator Janette! Janette is a firm favourite of many here and the support and care she’s offered to patients over the years will be greatly missed.

A special mention must be made to thank John for his contributions to the Caswell Chat meetings; he attended every meeting and kept us on track! We would also like to take this opportunity to thank Shaun who has so kindly contributed so many articles for this edition. It just remains to say a huge thank you to all who have volunteered their time, ideas, articles, pictures and skills in order to make this fantastic summer edition of the Caswell Chat.

Wishing all our readers and happy and healthy summer!
The Editor.