Volunteering at Hospitals

[SlaveHeart]

I am hoping to volunteer at the local Mercy Hospital! Does anyone have any experience volunteering? I am trying to decided between volunteering in the ED or the mom/baby unit. In the ED volunteers greet people and bring refreshments to patients families while they wait and in the mom/baby unit they take pictures of babies and post them online. I know neither one has any 'real' patient interaction but I think just getting to absorb the zeitgeist of the hospital will be beneficial!

I'm interested in both emergency nursing and am thinking of becoming an EMT while on the waitlist for nursing school. However I am a mom and I love squishy baby faces! I'm not sure which area I should volunteer in.

I'd be stoked to hear about anyones volunteer experiences at hospitals.

[t2091]

I volunteer in my local ER and so far it has been a great experience. I stock rooms, clean rooms after discharge, take patients from triage to the room or up if they are being admitted. Overall it's a really good idea to volunteer to network and at least get some time in a hospital.

[LifesAJourney]

I use to volunteer in our ER and loved it! Nurses and the staff will take notice and may write a recommendation letter for ya :)

[PirateArrrNnnn]

I got done with my ER volunteer shift. The bad thing I noticed is that it seemed like some staff were just not happy to be there or bothered by me. Others were helpful in directing me in the correct direction and were thankful for my help. But the best thing so far is helping patients out just by taking time to talk. This will definitely help with establishing the confidence to talk to others and get that warm caring bedside manner as a nurse.