how can i volunteer at a hospital?

[meghan91]

i am in my second yea rof college and finished all my pre reqs for nursing school i want to work or volunteer at a hospital but dont know how, there isnt like an application on their website. any ideas how i could do this? what are some jobs i could do there that would involve patient care?

[UpinawayRN]

Walk into the hospital and start at the front desk. If he/she doesn't know ask to speak to the higher up, then keep going. There is an application and will want to reference check you. Bring your driver's license and reference info. Kudos for your desire to volunteer. It is a great start!:)

[JeanettePNP, MSN, RN, NP]

Hospitals have different rules for what volunteers can do and what you need to do to apply. Some hospitals want a commitment of X months or hours before you can become an official volunteer. Some won't let you have any patient contact at all. You will probably need to get health clearance (immunizations and PPD) and might have to agree to a background check.

If your hospital does let you have patient contact, tell them you're a nursing (or pre-nursing) student and they might let you do more or show you more. Before I was in school I volunteered on a med-surg floor and assisted the PCTs. Now as an unemployed new grad I volunteer on the peds floor and wherever else they need a hand.

[llg, PhD, RN]

Call the main hospital number and ask to speak to the Volunteer Department -- or the person who coordinates the volunteers.

Once you are speaking with someone in that department, ask them what the procedure is, what the requirements are, etc.

[RileyPuggle]

I volunteered at the hospital near me and it was very interesting. The hospitals usually have the information right on their website. The volunteer coordinator was actually really nice and thankful for all the volunteers. There were no time requirements. I went every Saturday, but some volunteers went once a month.

I was a patient transporter and I worked with a paid patient transporter. I would grab a hospital bed or wheelchair and help the patient into it, grab a blanket to cover them and bring them to either test, x-ray, etc. For the most part the patients were happy to have someone to talk while we walked since they were a little nervous. Some of the patients were belligerent and just didn't want to go anywhere.

I thought it was great to have that interaction with the patients but the paid transporters were on time restraints and it was stressful at times when the quotas weren't made for the day.

There was a HIPAA video we had to watch before they would allow us on the floor. The application included references by two people. I also had to have a tuberculosis (I think) test which was paid for by the hospital.