The Hospice Volunteer
Volunteers are a valued resource at Hospice & Community Care and serve in many capacities. Our volunteers represent diverse backgrounds and experiences while possessing one common motivation –the desire to help others in their time of need. Volunteers bring their own unique contributions to provide an extra level of care to our patients and families and allow staff to prioritize care in their professional areas of expertise. Of the 115,000 persons involved in hospice care in America, some 95,000 are volunteers and each year they give more than 5 million hours to help dying persons and their families.
Highlights of Volunteer Service
• Over 30,000 total volunteer hours
• Over 4,000 hours devoted to direct patient care
• Volunteers saved Hospice and Community Care over $360,000
Profile of a Volunteer
• Availability - has time or is able to set aside time for tasks
• Flexibility - comfortable with a variety of people and settings
• Non-judgmental attitude
• Warmth
• Compassion
• Willingness to help people
• Ability to work with others
Volunteer Opportunities
Patient Companion Volunteers
Meet patient needs by performing helpful tasks such as reading aloud, assisting with mealtime, engaging in life review, and generally companioning patients in homes and long term care facilities. Patient Companion Volunteers provide caregivers with much needed respite time. Patient Companions do not furnish medical care or advice to the patient or family but offer non-medical help and support in a variety of creative ways.
Vigil Volunteers
Hospice & Community Care is launching a new Vigil Volunteer Program. Vigil Volunteers are Patient Companions who have a desire to extend themselves to patients and families as end of life nears. They receive extra training to enable them to offer a comforting presence for families and an assurance that no one dies alone and that caregivers have the support they need at this difficult time. These volunteers have the flexibility in their schedules to be on call at certain times during the month in case a patient/family need this additional level of caring service.
> Read more about the Vigil Volunteer program
Office Volunteers
Work in the office performing clerical tasks such as filing, typing, answering telephones and assisting with mailings.
Special Task Volunteers
Helping with fund raisers, "handyman" repairs and cooking goodies for Hospice events are just a few of the many things that Special Task Volunteers do for Hospice.
Bereavement Volunteers
Help with mailings, provide support to family members and assist in bereavement follow-up.
Resale Shop Volunteers
Provide customer service and assistance in collecting, organizing, and displaying donated items at one of our resale and gift shop locations – either in York or Rock Hill. Beehives & Butterflies volunteers may work at special events which benefit and advertise our unique stores. Store proceeds benefit Hospice and Community Care patients and families
> Read more about the Hospice Resale Shop.
Watchman Volunteers
Serve as liaisons with their churches and communities. Watchmen aid in identifying and communicating needs and help to educate others about end of life issues and hospice services. By being trained volunteers of Hospice & Community Care, Watchmen are able to share knowledge and information about all aspects of the Hospice way of “caring for life.”
> Read more about The Watchmman Program.
All volunteers attend a 12-hour training session that thoroughly explains the Hospice & Community Care philosophy and emphasizes the dying and grief processes.
If you are interested in becoming a Hospice volunteer, call us at 803-329-1500 or e-mail info@hospicecommunitycare.org.
