ED nurses: What can a volunteer do to make your life easier?

Lev, MSN, RN, NP · Nov 29, 2016

One thing that I would love to see our volunteers do is to make sure that the room is stocked with enough blankets and gowns. And to make sure supplies are stocked in general.

petali · Nov 29, 2016

Thanks for the comment! Yes, I forgot to mention-we're supposed to do that too.

jdub6 · Nov 29, 2016

Help direct visitor traffic by answering some of the "where is the closest vending machine? " and "how do i get to the pharmacy/ icu/out to smoke from here? " and even "where is the waiting room? " On that same note perhaps going around and if visitors are clearly just sitting around or engaged in light conversation (as opposed to meeting with a doc or having a meeting about hospice) letting them know "just a reminder that the cafeteria stops serving for the night in an hour if you had plans to go down there" or "just letting you know that valet parking closes soon if you need to move your car. " These issues are not really relevant to patient care and suck up a lot of staff time.

If your hospital uses a room service dining system and there is a way for volunteers to know what the patients diet order is, perhaps helping some of the patients order their meals? Some of the older/ confused/medicated/ just plain entitled or don't read well patients have endless questions about what they can eat when it is very clearly spelled out in the menu what food is with which diet- all you have to do is read it. Or they have some sort of impairment and can't use the phone to place their order. This would likely be for more inpatient boarders.

Maybe helping the desk clerk answer the phone if you can be trained to do so? Sometimes they are swamped with calls and most of them are simple hold and transfer or hold and page someone to pick up. Others are questions like "what time do you close? " (yes, really. )

petali · Nov 30, 2016

Thank you! I'll definitely look into how I can help people in the waiting room. I'll see if I'm allowed to help with ordering for meals too.

NurseHeart&Soul, MSN · Dec 4, 2016

Does the facility have any special supplies for pediatric patients? Handing out coloring books or crayons to the pediatric patients and those in the waiting room is very helpful. Distracts the child which lessens the stress for the parent. After procedures like sutures, do they have any rewards to give their children? Stickers or stuffed animals? Being proactive to obtain these things is great.

More than anything, introduce yourself to the staff. Let them know who you are, that you would like to help, and if there is anything you can do to make their job easier you would love to do so! Often times for volunteers it's a lot of running around with odd jobs (getting visitors, running to the lab etc...), but the more visible you are and the more helpful you can be the more likely you will become part of the team. This will benefit you immensely when the staff gets to know you and your future aspirations. They will hopefully then will start pulling you in to see interesting procedures and cases which I presume is what you're really hoping for.

You have positioned yourself well for potential future opportunities. Dive in and ENJOY!!!

petali · Dec 7, 2016

I didn't see any kid supplies, but I could probably double-check the next time I'm there! At my last shift, there was a mom who was admitted to the ED with an in. The mom was feeling really sick and weak, and she didn't have anyone else taking care of her kid. I did help her put her kid in her stroller while she was napping, and one of the nurses held the kid for a bit to give the mom a break. Maybe I could try to help out in that sense, helping with childcare when needed.

I have had my second shift, and although it's a lot of grunt work, like cleaning beds/rooms, stocking supplies, the staff are really nice and appreciative. At the end of my shift, a nurse let me watch the relocation of a dislocated shoulder, which was nifty! I think that in the next couple weeks I will be able to get to know the staff better and I'll be able to help out more.

Thank you for your reply!

NurseHeart&Soul, MSN · Dec 8, 2016

Maybe I could try to help out in that sense, helping with childcare when needed.
I have had my second shift, and although it's a lot of grunt work, like cleaning beds/rooms, stocking supplies, the staff are really nice and appreciative. At the end of my shift, a nurse let me watch the relocation of a dislocated shoulder, which was nifty! I think that in the next couple weeks I will be able to get to know the staff better and I'll be able to help out more.
Thank you for your reply!

You definitely can help with kid care. Always needed!

As for getting to watch the shoulder reduction...super exciting! I'd imagine that's what you're there to get exposed to. Keep doing what you're doing, scrub those gurneys, make yourself busy...you will grown on the ED team, and then hopefully get yourself into more of those fun situations. Don't be afraid to tell the staff that you would love to see anything interesting, watch a CPR etc... Let them know you are there to learn!

Check in with the charge nurse when you arrive on shift. Introduce yourself to as many people as possible at the beginning of your shift and let them know what you can do for them. So many people come and go through the ED. If you don't introduce yourself people may not realize that you are a volunteer there to help!

Another thing that you can do is offer to help hold/talk to a child who needs sutures. Sometimes male physicians need a chaperone when doing pelvic exams. Your presence is extremely valuable! Have fun!

petali · Dec 10, 2016

I have to work on introducing myself- I can see how that can be helpful! And I'll see if they need chaperones. Thanks again :)