Volunteer Webmaster

What will you be doing?

The volunteer will be webmaster of the charity's website, currently using WordPress. The website needs some re-design and maintenance and it may be an option to move away from WordPress to another "template". The website is an important "window" in to the charity's activities as the project histories, whether in Ukraine, Russia or Estonia, for example, give an insight into what benefits collaboration with CHI can bring. After a number of personnel training exchanges, the collaboration often settles in to a twinning link, for example, to share a particularly complex case of CF. As some partners may have a limited knowledge of English, one new website facility needed is a "Google translate" function. In the past, most collaboration has involved "home" and "away" visits, for example, a Cardiff CF team travelling to Tartu and Tallinn and the Estonian CF specialists - CF consultants, physiotherapists, dieticians travelling to Cardiff. The pandemic and climate change have caused us to re-think forms of collaboration. We are designing master-classes for CF physiotherapy and nutrition, which will be accessible on the internet via a password-protected section of our website, consisting  of educational videos and powerpoint presentations... this facility does not yet exist. The webmaster is likely to work with and report to a Director of Communications and Social Media, a Trustee, but will be part too of a relatively small organisation, led by the Chairman of the Board of Trustees. In the past, the webmaster has been well-equipped to be the editor of the charity's periodic newsletters - perhaps this arrangement could continue.

What are we looking for?

The volunteer will first of all feel very well motivated by the work undertaken by Child Health International - the raising of standards of cystic fibrosis healthcare and, consequently improvements in  quality of life and life expectancy of those with CF. This person will have experience of website design with particular knowledge of WordPress and will be expected to demonstrate their WordPress competence by submitting a website which they have designed and maintained. Part of the task is "Content Management", which arguably comes with experience. Some medical knowledge, especially of cystic fibrosis, will be useful. Because many patients are young and health data is sensitive, the webmaster must understand privacy requirements and laws about data protection. The design and functionality of the website will hopefully reflect the webmaster's creative capabilities.

What difference will you make?

The CHI website is crucial to the impact the charity can make. Although collaboration with Russia is sadly suspended, the projected online training facilities will be a great step forward. A Russian charity has agreed in principle to translate all materials in to Russian and re-transmit them far and wide in to the enormous country, which is the Russian Federation. The supporting skills, vital to a person with the CF condition, of physiotherapy and diet are understaffed in the Russian Federation. (Russian is almost the charity's second language after English ... as many countries that formerly were part of the Soviet Union, learnt Russian ... Moldova, Bulgaria, Belarus, the Baltic States and Ukraine). With some 30 years' experience of CHI's operations, we have seen some quite dramatic improvements in the life expectancy and quality of life of those with CF - thanks in part to the excellent skills and resources of the UK's CF medics. There is no reason to think that this trend will not continue. The website can also be a valuable fund-raising tool