Comment / Absolute deliverers

If you applied the usual representative body logic to our association, it probably wouldn’t function. The 1%-3% of members typically active in most other professional bodies would give us about 100 people to populate our dozen or so committees and similar number of branches; we would have a very small pool of people to speak and contribute at events; and an impossibly low number of people to call upon when new volunteers were required. In short, we wouldn’t exist.

Thankfully, we do. And that is the result of the hundreds and hundreds of volunteers who work hard to make this happen. They are the members who sit on committees and boards, who manage branches at a local level and ultimately step up to the plate to become our leaders.  In terms of activity levels, that means well over 10% of members are actively involved – unheard of in professional bodies.

At the core of the HFMA are people who are instinctive supporters. They not only have the season ticket and all the merchandise, but they also turn up at away matches (if you’ll pardon the football imagery). 

For some years the board has been looking at a way of recognising these ‘absolute deliverers’ within the HFMA family. We have for many years given those who have made a sustained and substantial input into our work honorary fellowships, which confer lifetime membership on the individual. However, the criteria is that they must be retiring or stepping back from the HFMA, so how does that recognise them at the peak when they are contributing so much to HFMA’s work?

At the key supporters dinner last month, we presented 20 members with a new award, the Key Contributor Award, which was given to those individuals who make a sustained contribution to our work. Their reward, apart from attending the dinner, is five years’ free membership, as a small token of the association’s thanks.

We know the motivation for these individuals is not personal gain. The HFMA is merely thanking them by exempting them from fees. You can see further details of the awards on the centre pages of this issue. I am sure you will all recognise some familiar faces.

Volunteers are at the heart of the association’s mission and we couldn’t do what we do without them. As this year’s awards demonstrate, contributions are made at both branch and national committee level and there are roles at all levels – you can give as much or as little of your time as you want. 

As the service goes through the current batch of changes, we will need to think carefully about the time that individuals can give and how, for example, branches are organised in the wake of the demise of the strategic health authorities. There may not be the money available to invest in training and development and we will have to look at our business model to make sure we are providing the right services and generating income to cover them.

If you feel inspired and think you might want to get involved with a local branch or a national committee, we are keen for your support wherever you are across the four UK nations. Who knows – perhaps you will feature in a future report on key contributors.