Can anyone suggest ideas for volunteering?

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Can anyone suggest organizations to volunteer with to gain experience, and brownie points for nursing school applications? :w00t:

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Specializes in Peri-op/Sub-Acute ANP.

Sure, most hospitals have a volunteer corps. Google some local hospitals to where you live and give them a call. Volunteering will give you some exposure to the hospital environment, and you will get the inside scoop on perspective employers for when you graduate!

Also, if you volunteer at a hospital that also takes students from the local nursing school program you may have an inside scoop on your new clinical site.

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Specializes in LTC.

I would do something I was interested in. Nursing schools are looking for well rounded students. If you volunteer in a women's shelter, with new imigrants, or anything else you can flesh out the important nursing/people skills you learned from it.

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I am currently volunteering in the ER department of a local hospital. I think that if you are like me and want to get involved in what is going on, volunteering may be a bit of a letdown. My current post is at the "check-in" counter when people first enter the ER to sign in. I must admit, you do get a new perspective from working behind the counter vs coming in to be seen, and you also get the opportunity to ask questions of the unit secretary and the techs and nursing students, which at our hospital are the people who trade off shifts working up front at the check-in desk. I did have the opportunity to choose my shift, and they did give me the option of trying to place me in the area I wanted to work in. The downside to me is after that first volunteer day, when you go back the next time, you want to do MORE!! I think that it is just the natural progression of things, but by law, you can only observe. I work 1 pm to 5 pm on Saturdays. This is my 4th Saturday coming up, and I am already thinking about quitting or something because I sit on my full-time day job, and then I go to the hospital and sit for 4 hours asking poeple to fill out a pink sheet with their information. Oh-and I also get to put their ID bracelet on!! Usually, I will volunteer to go search for a wheelchair or escort people to one of the triage rooms (eventhough the hospital is a maze and I got a family and myself lost once!!!). I asked once if I could go with the tech that was doing a half shift at the desk if I could go with her to the triage room that she would be working in, but unfortunately, it is against the rules. But you do get a free meal if you work 4 hours, and they have a really nice cafeteria. I think maybe I will do the 2 hour shifts 2 days a week to cut down on the boredom. I was hoping that the ER would be more exciting, which it is but I just really want to do more which makes it a frustrating 4 hours. The lady I relieve is in Pre Med, and she says the same thing about her shift, so it is not just me. I know I was rambling, but I hope this helps.

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Hi -

I think volunteering at a local hospital is a nice way to learn about the environment and maybe even pick up some new skills, if they will let you. It depends on the place and their rules.

I volunteered for about 8 months in the pharmacy dept, basically doing the same stuff as a pharmacy tech. I helped fill prescriptions, which at first seemed strange that they would let a volunteer do that with no pharm background - but since everything gets checked and double checked before it gets delivered, they allow it. It gave me a new appreciation for how a hospital pharmacy works, and how busy those people are! I also learned a little bit about drugs. I probably would have stayed on, but once school started I just couldn't give the time anymore.

Good luck!

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I volunteer at Options for Sexual Health, which in the US is planned parenthood. It's nice because we have a doctor and nurse on duty and when it gets slow I can talk to them and ask them questions- everyone who works there is SO nice. Also I get a bit more patient interaction than doing a reception job- and when I'm done my training I'll be able to consult patients and teach them different methods of birth control or options for unplanned pregnancies.

the problem is I don't get enough time per week so I'm looking for another volunteer job!

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I am currently volunteering in the ER department of a local hospital. I think that if you are like me and want to get involved in what is going on, volunteering may be a bit of a letdown. My current post is at the "check-in" counter when people first enter the ER to sign in. I must admit, you do get a new perspective from working behind the counter vs coming in to be seen, and you also get the opportunity to ask questions of the unit secretary and the techs and nursing students, which at our hospital are the people who trade off shifts working up front at the check-in desk. I did have the opportunity to choose my shift, and they did give me the option of trying to place me in the area I wanted to work in. The downside to me is after that first volunteer day, when you go back the next time, you want to do MORE!! I think that it is just the natural progression of things, but by law, you can only observe. I work 1 pm to 5 pm on Saturdays. This is my 4th Saturday coming up, and I am already thinking about quitting or something because I sit on my full-time day job, and then I go to the hospital and sit for 4 hours asking poeple to fill out a pink sheet with their information. Oh-and I also get to put their ID bracelet on!! Usually, I will volunteer to go search for a wheelchair or escort people to one of the triage rooms (eventhough the hospital is a maze and I got a family and myself lost once!!!). I asked once if I could go with the tech that was doing a half shift at the desk if I could go with her to the triage room that she would be working in, but unfortunately, it is against the rules. But you do get a free meal if you work 4 hours, and they have a really nice cafeteria. I think maybe I will do the 2 hour shifts 2 days a week to cut down on the boredom. I was hoping that the ER would be more exciting, which it is but I just really want to do more which makes it a frustrating 4 hours. The lady I relieve is in Pre Med, and she says the same thing about her shift, so it is not just me. I know I was rambling, but I hope this helps.

That's funny...it's the exact same at Duke where I'm volunteering in the ER. NOTHING TO DO!!! Even with getting people water and blankets to make them more comfortable, you are technically supposed to ask a nurse to make sure it is okay (which really defeats the purpose...you are trying to make things go faster and smoother, and asking a nurse if someone can have a blanket puts a monkey wrench in the works). I suggest contacting the person who is in charge of volunteers and tell them how bored you are, and that you want to be useful while you are there. I actually just did that, and am going to spend an hour with the volunteer coordinator so that I have a better idea of things that can be done while I'm at the hospital. If that doesn't work, the volunteer coordinator might be able to direct you to other volunteer positions that are a little more active. Anyway, though, I feel your pain! I've also been contemplating spending my time elsewhere...

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I'm planning on volunteering at one of the local hospitals....hopefully on the pediatric floor or the labor and delivery floor....since I still can't decide between the two for nursing...I'm hoping that volunteering will do some good for others as well as help me decide. :>

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WantAccel.BSN:

I am so happy to see I am not alone. I think that it is so competitive with people trying to get volunteer positions at hospitals that they are willing to do anything (or nothing) just to be in the hospital. For me, it took at least a month just to get a callback. The hospitals here put you through almost the same process as they do new hires. I had to go to an unpaid 5 hour orientation with new hires and everthing. One thing I was really looking forward to was the action I see on TV, especially in the emergency room. Boy was I wrong!! I swear, it is the longest 4 hours of my life!!!

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WantAccel.BSN:

I am so happy to see I am not alone. I think that it is so competitive with people trying to get volunteer positions at hospitals that they are willing to do anything (or nothing) just to be in the hospital. For me, it took at least a month just to get a callback. The hospitals here put you through almost the same process as they do new hires. I had to go to an unpaid 5 hour orientation with new hires and everthing. One thing I was really looking forward to was the action I see on TV, especially in the emergency room. Boy was I wrong!! I swear, it is the longest 4 hours of my life!!!

No joke! I had to submit a lengthy application, and had to get a couple of people that I know to submit written references. Then, I had to go in for what was, more or less, a formal interview. However, my training was crap. It was basically a tour of the ED, and that was about it. I totally get the boredom. I really do NOTHING there, which is pretty unfortunate because the people that work there are pretty busy, and I'm sure would love to have a helping hand. Ah well. Like I said, I'm meeting with the person in charge of the volunteers for an hour next Friday in attempts to get a better idea of what I can do while I'm there. However, I think that they feel like I'm "complaining" and am a pain in their butts (the people in charge of volunteers). It sucks to feel so useless for that time, because I have so much work of my own to do. It makes it really hard to go in when I'm suppossed to as well (did I mention that if you aren't going to be there that they don't want you to call or write, basically because they don't care?).

~Sasha

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Oh my goodness!! I am laughing so hard right now because I had to get written references as well, AND I had fill out a 10 page medical questionnaire AND my doctor had to send in a medical questionnaire about me also!!! I got NO orientation! I was just told to go report to the ER front desk at 1 pm!! I don't know if you experienced this, but at first, I swear that people that worked at the front desk kindof gave me the cold shoulder, and when someone would come up to fill out their pink sheet, as I would be reaching for it to give it to the person, they would actually do a "quick draw" and give the person the clipboard!! This is just too much!LOL! But the thing that really irks me the most is that this is a huge Trauma Level 1 hospital, and they have a certain place for volunteer parking, so I had to park on one side of the campus, WALK all the way back to the main campus to clock in at Volunteer Services, then go all the way to the side where I parked to get to the ER. Then, at the end of my shift, I had to go all the way back to the Main bldg to clock out and then walk back PAST the ER to get back to my car--IN THE DARK! Please do not get me started!! LOL! I have decided that if I am going to go through all of this trouble, I am going to be applying for a PAYING gig at the hospital which is what I am working on now! Also, I think that the reason it is such a low responsibility job-asided from us legally not being able to do anything-is because 95% or more of the volunteers are senior citizens and probably always have been, so they aren't used to people wanting to do more. I know of 1 hospital that will train you basically as a CNA volunteer, and you have to agree to volunteer for at least a year, but I can't see doing that hard work and not being paid for it. You might as well get a paying gig. Oh yeah, and because I had to wear white scrubs under a coral lab jacket, and the nurse techs and unit secretaries sometimes wore regular clothes, when people would come to the front desk they would automaticaly look at and talk to me about their problems and to ask questions. I don't think the employees like that either!LOL!

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Can anyone suggest organizations to volunteer with to gain experience, and brownie points for nursing school applications? :w00t:

Do you have a VA hospital near you? I see a lot of volunteers at the one here in Tampa. Alot of the volunteers sit in the surgery waiting rooms with the patients families. They have a desk and a log in book of the patients name and the family member who is waiting on them. They check to see where your loved on is at (whether still in surgery or in the recovery room) They also have a phone to call the recovery unit and see whats up with who and where everyone is.

If the surgeon comes in while the family is getting something to eat or drink in the cafeteria, they take a message or hunt you down and bring you to the surgeon/nurse or whoever has the info. They also make sure to remind you to eat and even supply crackers, and drinks so you don't get sick yourself while waiting.

They really are well utilized at this VA.

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