- Scarlett McNally, professor
- scarlettmcnally{at}cantab.net
Follow Scarlett on X @scarlettmcnally
I’m often astounded by the inherent goodness of people. In the UK about half of adults volunteer,1 and we have 185 000 charities.2 Some of these are set up by people whose lives were changed in an instant, who are determined not to let a preventable similar event happen to someone else.
August was national road victim month, and the charity RoadPeace3 paid tribute to the 1600 people killed and 28 000 seriously injured on Britain’s roads each year4 and their loved ones. As an orthopaedic surgeon I’ve seen devastating injuries. As our entire specialty is built on wanting to fix people and improve lives, I can feel the raw human desire to make things better for others.
I have the huge privilege of working with charities that strive for a better future for people with health conditions and for environments that support communities and prevent ill health. The Richmond Group is a coalition of 13 health charities with successful campaigns such as We Are Undefeatable,5 showcasing people with long term conditions who are keeping physically active to improve their health. This recognises that multimorbidity is the new normal and that community led endeavours can be hugely effective in improving health.5
The benefits to people who volunteer or donate are becoming clearer, beyond just fulfilling a charity’s aims. Four brain chemicals are involved in reward or mood: dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphins,67 all of which affect mental and physical health. Oxytocin is released when doing a good deed. Serotonin is released when we’re together with others: many people are familiar with this molecule, as more than four million NHS patients (8% of the adult UK population) take selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs),8 a type of antidepressant.
Staying active
We should encourage people to do things for others—partly to help themselves. My most recent endeavour was cycling 290 miles on the “Jo Cox Way,”9 in memory of the MP murdered in 2016. This charitable foundation promotes concepts of respect, recognising that we have more in common than that which divides us, and of connecting communities. My top tip is that it can be easier to do something for others than for yourself. Having a goal keeps you focused on the training.
I’m a trustee and president of a charity, the Medical Women’s Federation. We agonise over balancing the tasks of running a charity, supporting members, campaigning, and ensuring an income. Generous donations are hugely important, but the magic happens when members connect and work together. Our recent survey shows that the main reason members join and stay is their desire to give back and help other women who are doctors and medical students.10
With an increasingly ageing population,11 we need to encourage people to contribute and stay active, moving away from the idea that retirement is a time for rest. Older people provide perspective and wisdom but often experience isolation11: we need them to connect with younger people and for many more people to volunteer where action is needed. People with disabilities and older people are more likely than others to participate in informal volunteering,1 so we need to challenge negative stereotypes about these groups.12
Let’s celebrate and enable the millions of unsung heroes who are making communities, lives, and health better—including their own.
Footnotes
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Competing interests: Scarlett McNally is a consultant orthopaedic surgeon, deputy director of the Centre for Perioperative Care, and president of the Medical Women’s Federation.
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Provenance and peer review: Commissioned; not externally peer reviewed.
