How Do Volunteer’s Experiences of Organizational Facilitators Influence Their Satisfaction and Loyalty: An Example of Hospital Volunteers

Background: Fundamental aspects of patient experience have been reported as substandard in emergency departments. Hospital volunteers can improve the patient experience in inpatient settings. However, evidence is limited on their impact in emergency departments. Aims: To determine whether emergency department volunteers could enhance patient experience through assisting with the psychological aspect of patient care and patients' nutritional needs. Methods: Patients attending an emergency department responded to a questionnaire as part of a cross-sectional study. Comparisons were made between when the volunteer scheme was running and when there were no volunteers. Outcomes included patient experience of emotional support from staff and access to food and drink. Results: Patients present when the volunteer scheme was running reported obtaining food and drink more often (96/124 vs 20/39, % rate difference 26, 95% CI 10–42, P=0.002) and that a member of staff offered them something to eat and drink more frequently (96/146 vs 19/52, % rate difference 29, 95% CI 14–45, P<0.001). There was no difference between patient responses when the volunteer scheme was running and not for emotional support from staff (49/68 vs 14/21, % rate difference 5, 95% CI -17-28, P=0.63). Conclusions: Hospital volunteers made a substantial contribution to providing food and drink to patients in the emergency department. Emotional support from volunteers was limited.

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Volunteers in Hospital and Home Care: A Precious Resource

Tumori Journal ◽

10.1177/030089169408000404 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 80 (4) ◽

pp. 269-272 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Claude Fusco-Karmann ◽

Marcello Tamburini

Keyword(s):

Home Care ◽

Professional Training ◽

Psychosocial Support ◽

Clinical Activity ◽

Care Givers ◽

Family Assistance ◽

The Family ◽

Precious Resource ◽

Hospital Volunteers ◽

At Home

Aims and background Ten years ago, a program o intervention by volunteers in cancer hospitals and at home was started. Home care is accomplished by teams of palliative care givers, in which volunteers are included. After a selective interview, all voluntary candidates with the necessary qualifications are trained and specific apprenticeship is done. Hence, their professional training is carried out through regular groups of supervision followed by a psychologist and a coordinator. A study was carried out to evaluate the activity of volunteers, in the hospital and at home, as judged by patients, nurses and the volunteers themselves. Methods On the whole, the data analyzed concerned 216 patients, 163 nurses and 92 volunteers in the hospital and 30 patients, 16 nurses and 35 volunteers at home. The questionnaires used for the study had four possible answers (no, a little, much, very much) or required an answer on a scale of 0 to 10. Results A high quota of patients gave a very positive opinion (“much” or “very much”) on the importance of the presence of volunteers in the hospital (76%) and at home (90%). In the second case, volunteers were particularly useful to improve a patient's mood (80%) and to solve practical problems (47%). General agreement was noted among nurses and volunteers on the activity of the latter. The main form of intervention of all volunteers is to give psychosocial support to patients. A score of 7 to 10 was given to this item by 60% of the nurses and by 82% of the hospital volunteers. At home, respectively 80% and 89% gave such a score for the same item. Other activities of the volunteer were support for the family, assistance in social activities, and to give information. Conclusions The presence of the volunteer in the hospital and at home appears to be helpful to the patient and the family by becoming part of the team without becoming involved directly in its clinical activity.

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