For the last eight weeks, local girl Olea Brega has been volunteering with us here at Angelus Moldova. A student at Wofford College in South Carolina, USA, Olea first contacted us at the end of 2010 regarding a voluntary stint at Hospice Angelus to help her as part of the university's Bonner Scholar Summer of Service. Olea, from Chisinau, has spent the last 8 weeks working with the medical team and her activities have included assisting our nurses on home visits, organising fundraising events and being heavily involved with the Angelus stoma distribution project.

Angelus doctor Natalia Carafizi has praised Olea's efforts saying "The entire team was extremely impressed at how Olea took up any challenge that was set for her. The main medical aspect that Olea was involved in was stomatherapy. She showed a willingness to learn about this subject which she previously knew nothing about and excelled when it came to picking up what was required of her. From constructing stoma bags to visiting and liaising with patients, Olea showed a real empathy with patients along with a real hunger for knowledge. If she didn’t know something, she made sure that she learned it and was able to pick up this new information with relative ease".

Olea is leaving Chisinau again this week to go back to her studies in the US. She will be missed by the team but we wish her every success as she continues her studies to become a doctor. We thank Olea for her efforts here in summer 2011 and we look forward to seeing her back in Chisinau next year.