Hospital Volunteer Questions!?
I'm currently a Sophomore in High school and i have the opportunity to volunteer at a hospital. I have a couple questions about it. 1) what should i wear? I heard you move around alot, should i wear jeans, shorts, khakis? 2)what kind of test do i have to take (drug test, TB test..)? 3)what stuff do i do? 4)Is it worth it? does it benefit for college, university? 5)is it a good learning experience? thank you for your time.
How do you volunteer at a hospital as a high school student?
Depending on the hospital, you'll either have to fill out an application online (through the hospital website) or you'll have to go down to the Volunteer office and fill it out. Most hospitals have a Junior Volunteer (anyone 17 or under usually) and a Senior Volunteer (18 and over). You'll have to get a physical done and make sure your vaccines are in order (which is what they do for anyone who volunteers or works there). Volunteer work does no necessarily mean you need experience - it's a way to GAIN experience. Your father being a doctor won't help you get a volunteer job there. Volunteers are almost always accepted unless there's reason not to be. You'll go through the steps like everyone else: fill out an application, get your medical forms filled out and wait for an assignment or choose one. You won't need to know any Medical Terminology - depending on what you do, you could be in the gift shop or helping out families or something. Some volunteers help transport patients from their rooms to the other departments for exams. They'll tell you and train you for whatever your assignment is.
As a hospital nurse, what could I do as a volunteer to help you the most?
I don't think I would take advantage of such a service even if I were still working.Many hospital nurses work three 12′s a week, so usually have ample time to do errands and such during the week.I think a better support service to nurses would be an in-hospital volunteer service, if hospital administration would allow such a thing. They might not, because all volunteers would need to be vetted to ensure their vaccinations are up to date and that they've had HIPAA training.In this scenario, I’d envision a group of volunteers who would provide comfort measures to patients. These are the kinds of things that nurses or nurse's aides once had the time to do, but don't any longer.This would include making sure that patients who can take oral fluids have a fresh water pitcher at the bedside, finding an extra pillow or bedside chair when one is needed, passing out newspapers to those who want one, getting an extra blanket for a patient, answering the call lights when they're not answered promptly (and finding the nurse or nurse's aide to relay the need), running errands for the nurse in the hospital (such as picking up lunch when the nurse doesn't have time to take a full break), etc. Even setting up for a patient's bath—though not bathing the patient, or changing linens while patients are sitting up in chairs, would be a huge help.There are many unskilled services that could be provided for patients but aren't, because hospitals are so short-staffed.I'll be interested to see the feedback from other nurses. Most of the nurses I know are so independent that they may have a hard time accepting personal assistance. However, when it comes to helping patients, the more help, the better, I believe.Volunteers probably wouldn't be allowed to touch patients due to insurance concerns. That said, there are plenty of other tasks that could be done to enhance the patient's stay in the hospital.
How can I volunteer at a hospital?
I am 15 years old and want to volunteer at a children s hospital to simply comfort and befriend young children suffering of cancer, abuse, or any other trauma. Almost like a candy striper. However I dont want to be a doctor or anything like that when I m older. So does anyone know how I can do this??
Volunteering with Cancer Kids?
So I am a girl and I am 13 years old and I am going to start volunteering at John Hopkins hospital and spend time with kids who have cancer. Maybe like paint some of the girls nails and stuff and do their makeup or something. What are some other activities i can do with them? I am going to do it with one of my friends too, but what are some things we can do? Also, Do they let you take the kids out of the hospital for a little to do something fun one day? Thank you!
I'm a just graduate nurse. I really want to volunteer in Africa. How can I do?
Volunteering is a great thing especially in Africa.I would advise you to first pinpoint which country you would like to visit. Think about languages that are spoken in that country Next find out the documents you need to travel to that country. Embassies are the best point of contact about the country, people, culture etc. Find out how 'welcoming' foreigners especially volunteers are to the country. It would be advisable to always look at a website that gives advise on safety to travel to that particular African country. Again the country specific embassy will be able to direct you otherwise visit your local government website specifically looking for country specific travel advice Then once you are certain the country is safe and you know the documents you need to travel (entry visa, vaccinations, flight ticket, accommodation address details, contact person details, prophylaxis for malaria, invitation letter)Then I would look on sites like WAYN or Tripadvisor and my favourite lonely planet to find out what travellers have written about the country.Now it's time to find a project/hospital in the country that can provide you with necessary documents to enter such as an invitation letter which should provide contact details and a stamp from the local authority that acknowledge you will be staying there for the purpose of your volunteer work. It might seem arduous work but this is for your safety if anything and to prevent being hassled at airports.Look for flights via skyscanner to get an idea of airlines but don't buy through that website by your ticket directly through your chosen airline A few weeks before you travel you will need to get a visa in your passport to allow you to enter the country it's at this time that you should visit your general practitioner for advise on vaccinations and prophylaxis which again is country specific It's worth it.I own a volunteer agency and for the past 8 years have placed over 250 healthcare workers in countries in Africa to volunteer there.Just the other day a medical student emailed me saying her experience in Cameroon helped her to make her mind up in becoming a tropical medicine specialist.I have coached each of these healthcare workers and would be happy to give you more assistance on your choices.
How do I become a candy striper or volunteer at a nursing home/hospital?
To start, you should contact the facilities you are interested in. Ask to speak to the volunteer coordinator or volunteer department. Some hospitals do have age restrictions and will not take anyone under a certain age (for my hospital, that's 16.) You do not need to have any specific training ahead of time. You will go through a volunteer training program at the hospital, and learn about the role you are expected to perform, safety issues, confidentiality, etc. You may need to interview, fill out an application, have a medical form signed by your doctor, provide vaccine records, and get a TB test. At my hospital, volunteers can choose what department they want to work in or what role they want to do. There are messengers- people who go department to department to deliver things or pick things up. There are people who do filing in various departments, people who greet patients and visitors at the front door, people who escort patients out when discharged, people who deliver flowers to patients, people who take a book/magazine cart to patient rooms, and many more. I work in pediatrics, and we use our volunteers for things not found elsewhere in the hospital. Our volunteers visit the children to see if they want anything to do, and bring them games and toys. Our volunteers also play with the kids, either in their rooms or in the playroom, and offer the parents breaks so that the parents may go to the cafeteria or something and not have to worry about their children. We sometimes ask volunteers to rock babies, help us decorate, clean toys, stuff envelopes, organize the games or DVDs, read to children, lead art projects with the children, etc. We also have a program where volunteers come with their therapy animals and do pet therapy with the patients. The volunteers and animals are specially trained for this role. As far as timing, that really depends on the hospital. We do not accept volunteers for just one hour a week. It just wouldn't be worth it- by the time they got situated and got a list of patients and we explained things to them, there wouldn't be much time at all. Our volunteer shifts are two or three hours long, and once a week. Other hospitals may differ with this, though. I hope this helps you a little bit. Hospital volunteer work can be very rewarding. And- speaking for pediatrics- fun!
Why am I not immune to measles after three vaccinations?
As has already been said, the immune system is pretty random. B and T cells deliberately mutate their genes to create random receptors. This is a good thing because no amount of evolution where the pathogen is concerned, can trick it for very long. Sometimes people don't mount an immune response. This is one of the reasons herd immunity is so important. A negative titer, does not necessarily mean no immunity.
Varicella vaccine didn't work?
There are different types of antibodies - IgM which appears early and IgG which appears later and lasts in your blood. The test looks for IgG against the varicella virus and you will not have made this type of antibody yet. There is also a possibility that the immunisation failed - either it was stored incorrectly at some point or you failed to respond to the vaccine. This can happen in a small percentage of vaccinations. Wait 6-8 weeks before repeating the blood test. If it is still negative you could consider re-vaccination. In the meantime you just need to give the hospital a letter from your doctor stating that you have had the vaccination.
Has everyone in the UK had the BCG vaccination against TB?
If you are seventeen you will not have had it. In 2008, I think, they decided not to give children the vaccine anymore. Mine was the last year to have them. Wouldn't you know if you had the vaccine anyway? First they did the daisy prick test in your forearm, then if that faded they did another injection two weeks later. edit: I got it in either year 8 or 9.