Anyone ever volunteered in the ICU ?

[brad504]

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Getting tired of the ER. looking to change it up a bit. Looking for opinions/experiences from people who have volunteered there. did you enjoy it? how much patient contact did they allow you to have if any.

any insight would be appreciated

 

[Geebeejay]

Getting tired of the ER. looking to change it up a bit. Looking for opinions/experiences from people who have volunteered there. did you enjoy it? how much patient contact did they allow you to have if any.

any insight would be appreciated

Can't imagine there are many volunteers in the ICU. Most patients are intubated, and pretty much all patients are 1 to 1 with nursing... If there is a volunteer gig in an ICU, it would probably be primarily clerical with minimal patient contact. Realize...ICU patients are typically VERY sick, and I can't think of any real service that a volunteer would be capable of offering them.

 

[MedPR]

Getting tired of the ER. looking to change it up a bit. Looking for opinions/experiences from people who have volunteered there. did you enjoy it? how much patient contact did they allow you to have if any.

any insight would be appreciated

I volunteer in a NICU. Nothing special special.

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[Planes2Doc]

I wanted to do this since I thought it would be more meaningful than the scut work I did in the ED. Even though it sounds like it would be a great rewarding experience, almost everyone on SDN says the opposite. A lot of the patients are unconscious, and plenty of the families are probably upset and do not want to see any volunteers. Chances are you'll be doing more administrative work than anything meaningful. But who knows... Try it, maybe you will like it!

 

[MedPR]

I wanted to do this since I thought it would be more meaningful than the scut work I did in the ED. Even though it sounds like it would be a great rewarding experience, almost everyone on SDN says the opposite. A lot of the patients are unconscious, and plenty of the families are probably upset and do not want to see any volunteers. Chances are you'll be doing more administrative work than anything meaningful. But who knows... Try it, maybe you will like it!

Yup. Occasionally I stock the patient rooms with supplies but I mainly just keep the supply room organized, answer phone calls, and do scut work the nurses don't want to do.

However it has been a good talking point at interviews. Frailty of life, high risk situations, being useful but also knowing when to stay out of the way, etc.
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[Doctor Strange]

ICU is boooorrriinnnnnggggggg. Patients with a GCS of 3 = laying there forever and hopped up on pain meds.

 

[circulus vitios]

You're untrained and a huge liability to the hospital so any contact you get is going to be completely pointless. Really, patient contact is entirely overrated. The residents I'm shadowing break the rules and let me do stuff that I shouldn't do, and even then it's still "whatever."

 

[Planes2Doc]

However it has been a good talking point at interviews.Frailty of life, high risk situations, being useful but also knowing when to stay out of the way, etc.

Have you thought about a hospice? People generally have good things to say about that.

 

[MedPR]

Have you thought about a hospice? People generally have good things to say about that.

Yes. No thank you.

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[circulus vitios]

Yes. No thank you.

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I've never understood why people suggest hospice. It's depressing as hell. Obviously death is part of being a doctor, but it's not the only part of being a doctor, even if you are an oncologist or something.

 

[Irish Football]

Yeah, I volunteered in the ICU hoping to see some new things, but it was pretty boring like others here have mentioned. The patients were all unconscious or sick and I didn't have any responsibilities involving patient contact. I did get to actually manage the locked entrance door and decide who and when to let in (i.e. visitors or people without ID badges). I also got to see a few neat things like patients getting intubated, but 99% of the time it was just answering the phone, etc..

 

[MedPR]

I've never understood why people suggest hospice. It's depressing as hell. Obviously death is part of being a doctor, but it's not the only part of being a doctor, even if you are an oncologist or something.

I think I'm too introverted to approach dying people whom I've never met before. Even if I wanted to volunteer in hospice I probably wouldn't be a very good one.

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[circulus vitios]

I think I'm too introverted to approach dying people whom I've never met before. Even if I wanted to volunteer in hospice I probably wouldn't be a very good one.

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Same. "So, uh....you're dying, huh?"

 

[MedPR]

Same. "So, uh....you're dying, huh?"

Lol.

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[Spinach Dip]

I haven't, and don't really want to.

I have heard from a friend that it is mostly standing around and answering phones. Sometimes restocking equipment. The most interesting thing was when there was a code and they got to bag the patient for a minute until someone else took over.

So, it might be interesting to see an ICU from the inside, but don't expect to do anything amazing.

 

[Dmr6186]

Try volunteering in the transport department. You get some interaction with patients and get to know everyone in the hospital because you'll be everywhere.

 

[Natnow]

I currently shadow a doctor in the NICU. It has been one of the most enjoyable experiences for me so far during my undergraduate. Being alongside the head of the NICU is amazing and I get to see cesarian sections pretty much every time I am there, I have observed a few vaginal deliveries as well.

I would recommend you do all that you can so you can boost your experience. It can only help you!

Good luck!

 

[bearofthesnow]

I volunteer in the NICU as a cuddler and I love it. I hold fussy babies or ones that just ate and can observe the interactions that occur between the parents, nurses, doctors and staff. I've gained a lot of insight on all the work nurses and staff do. Not to mention, the babies are precious and it's a great feeling to see them get bigger and healthier to then finally go home.

 

[Marika11]

I work with a program that supplies volunteers for patients going through bone marrow transplants, are on the heme/onc floor, and in the ICU. All these situations require the parents and patients to be in the hospital for extended periods of time so we give the parents a chance to leave (go eat, shower, get groceries, etc, etc) and we play with/watch the patients. It's a great experience and means a lot to the family.

If there's some sort of opportunity for meaningful experiences in the ICU, then I say go for it! Prepare your self though, it can be tough sometimes. For my volunteer job it is not uncommon to be with a patient one week and then hear of their passing the next week.

 

[Tri1]

I volunteered for a while in a medical ICU at a rural charity-care hospital. It was an interesting experience. I got to observe some procedures like intubations, echos, endoscopies... But I primarily cleaned rooms, prepared for admits and restocked. I helped with ECG interpretation, but that was due to my other clinical experiences/certs. The nurses were friendly, and it was well worth my time. I also got to chat with a variety of physicians.

I think it would be slower for a volunteer than the ER, but if you're friendly, inquisitive and proactive, you're likely to learn a lot.

 

[goodkarma]

Getting tired of the ER. looking to change it up a bit. Looking for opinions/experiences from people who have volunteered there. did you enjoy it? how much patient contact did they allow you to have if any.

any insight would be appreciated

The hospital I volunteered at offered a Family Liaison volunteer position in the IUC that seemed cool. No scut work, just consoling families and keeping them company while their loved ones were in the ICU. I knew people who did it and loved it.

 

[bananapancake33]

The hospital I volunteered at offered a Family Liaison volunteer position in the IUC that seemed cool. No scut work, just consoling families and keeping them company while their loved ones were in the ICU. I knew people who did it and loved it.

I did something very similar for about a year. I had two experiences that were influential enough to end up with my personal statement. In the ICU, it is more important to interact with the families. Plus, it is a great talking point in interviews.