Matt Arding returns to Southampton General Hospital to help others

MATT Arding could be forgiven for never setting foot inside a hospital again.

But despite having battled a rare form of eye cancer since he was six months old, Matt has returned to Southampton General Hospital – not as a patient, but as a therapy assistant.

Now the 20-year-old is working alongside physiotherapists and occupational therapists to look after patients in the hospital’s Wessex neurological ward.

He is helping with patients’ physical rehabilitation and talking to them about any adaptations they might need in their homes.

Matt, who had a glass eye fitted in December last year, believes his experience of fighting cancer has helped him relate to his patients.

“A few of them ask what’s happened with me losing my eye, and when you tell them you’ve been on the same ward as them and been in a similar situation, they might think ‘He knows what he’s on about’,” said Matt.

“There were times when I was in hospital that people would come round and say to me ‘You’ve got to do this, you’ve got to do that’, but sometimes I just wanted to say ‘No’,” he explained.

“You can see some patients feel the same, but I think they might take heart from the fact I’ve been through the same system.

“Given the care I received, it made me more determined to give something back. To have the satisfaction of seeing the people you are helping makes the job worthwhile every day.”

Having lost his left eye to cancer in 2005, Matt had more obstacles than most to overcome in his search for full-time employment.

The former Chamberlayne Park pupil admits that, despite leaving Itchen College with A-levels two years ago, he was fearful about his job prospects.

“I was worried because employers obviously knew I had poor vision, but when I saw this job advertised I felt I would be suited to it and applied straight away.

“I’ve always wanted to do this sort of role, working with people hands-on, so when the job came up I grabbed it with both hands.”

Physiotherapist Stuart Fraser said Matt’s poor vision was never a subject of concern for his new employers.

“That would be irrelevant to us looking at any applicant for a job.

It was something we discussed, but ultimately the best candidate at interview will be the one who gets the job,” he said.

Matt only started his job a month ago but has already made a big impression. “His communication is absolutely fantastic, he’s got a lethal sense of humour and the patients love him. The feedback we’ve had has been great,”

said Stuart.

Asked how long he planned to stay in the job, Matt’s response was simple: “Forever.”