Why I chose my platform of cancer awareness and end of life care by Ms Diamond South Yorkshire 2020

So choosing my platform was quite easy for me. As long as I can remember cancer has always played a huge part in my life.

I have lost two grandads and my granny p to cancer and my dad had cancer when I was 3 years old and my Auntie was diagnosed with breast cancer a few years ago.

I also found a lump on breast 2 years ago luckily it was nothing serious but it was the scariest thing to go through.

So choosing cancer awareness as my platform was a no brainer, my local newspaper even heard about it and ran a lovely article both online and in print. This the link to the online article https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.doncasterfreepress.co.uk/news/people/are-you-doing-doncaster-womans-plea-all-check-cancer-487174%3famp

This has to be my favourite press piece so far. It allowed me to share how cancer has effected my life and also asked women of all ages to check there breasts. What really touched me was a nurse from my local hospital found me on Facebook and sent me a message thanking me for bringing breast cancer into the spotlight on a local level.

And that is the best thing about being a beauty queen impacting people’s life for the best.

I then started developing my platform while working with local charities to end of life care. This mainly happened when I saw my local Hospice put out an appeal for teddies for an adoption programme they were running and it got me thinking no one really talks about end of life care and we should it’s important to the person that is sadly dying but also to there friends and family. I even managed to get some press coverage for the Hospice too.

So as well on continuing raising awareness for cancer I’m also raising the awareness of end of life care that we receive in the U.K.. one way I am doing this is by positing one fact per day regarding end of life care (pre pandemic) to help raise awareness as well as sharing new end of life care conditions during the pandemic which charities like Marie curie are posting often as well as my local hospices. One idea which I thought was brilliant by Rotherham Hospice is that they have set up a dedicated email address so friends and family can email there loved one as they can’t see them due to the pandemic. It’s little things like this that will help people who are sadly coming to the end of there life know that they are loved, that they have friends and family and most importantly they are not alone !!

https://www.rotherhamhospice.org.uk/news/letters-to-loved-ones

It’s not uncommon for you to define or slightly change your platform throughout the time that you have a regional title just remember to makes notes on everything you have done so your interview ready and during lockdown this is the perfect time to make notes, lists and facts that you can discuss with the interview panel.