Cheers to Volunteers
Hospital volunteers are a vital part of the health care community. Offering their time free of charge, these hospital heroes work alongside medical staff and behind the scenes to make everyone’s day a little brighter.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 6.2 million people volunteered in a hospital or health care organization in 2015 — brightening the days of countless patients.
Volunteers contribute a wide variety of services to hospitals, like cuddling babies, delivering gifts, and teaming up with therapy pets. There are so many opportunities for you to bring your unique talents to your local hospital — here are a few examples:
For the Expert Navigators
For many people, navigating the hospital can be daunting. Whether they’re a patient anticipating a diagnosis, or a visitor overwhelmed by a loved one’s situation, there can be stress when it comes to navigating a hospital. One of the simplest, and sometimes the most appreciated, things a volunteer can do is help these people find where they’re going by serving as a personal guide. Providing a personalized experience helps patients feel more at home in the hospital, and can make their entire stay much more comfortable.
For the Dedicated Meal-Preppers
Maintaining a healthy diet is essential for a productive lifestyle. But sometimes that is easier said than done, especially in the case of patients who are housebound or lack access to nutritional resources. For these cases, many hospitals have programs that employ volunteers to deliver nutritious meals to recently discharged patients, or anyone referred to the program by a qualified physician. These programs help keep patients healthy as they transition out of the hospital, and reminds them that their local hospital is ready to provide care whenever and wherever they need it.
Discover how delivering meals can help patients and hospitals here.
For the “World’s a Stage” Performers
Do you walk around with a tune in your head? Or maybe you’re looking to dust off your instruments. Whatever your jam, your local hospital is the perfect place to play! Hospitals across the country look for volunteers to bring music into their halls to entertain patients, visitors, and staff. For patients, good music isn’t just easy on the ears — it can also help them recover!
See what the research has to say about the positive effects of playing for patients here.
For the Open Hearts with Open Arms
If you’re the kind of person everyone goes to for a good hug or a shoulder to cry on, your compassion and warm embrace are needed. Every year, roughly half a million babies end up in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). These babies require round-the-clock support, and often stay in the hospital much longer than their parents. To support their development when parents are not available, many NICU units seek volunteer baby cuddlers. New babies, especially those in the NICU, benefit tremendously from skin-to-skin contact and being held — it helps them sleep better, and makes them more attentive. So if you’re a serious snuggler, your local hospital could use you!
Learn more about how volunteer NICU cuddlers help babies grow here.
Do any of these sound like you? If so, you could be making a difference at your local hospital!
This National Volunteer Month, take time to do some research and learn how you can bring your talents, and your time, to your local hospital as a volunteer. All you have to do is reach out and ask!