Does volunteering in Hospital neccesarily= Clinical Experience?

[surftheiop]

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I was reading a description of the volunteering program at a hospital near my school and I was curious which volunteering opputonities would be considered "clinical" from a med school perspective?

"Volunteer - Work in the gift shop, serve as a visitor guide, answer telephones at reception desk, assist nurses with non-medical tasks, comfort patients in waiting rooms, transport patients where appropriate, provide clerical support, sort and deliver mail, and assist in many other ways. "

Is patient transport the only thing in here that I could list for clinical experience or does just volunteering in the hospital doing almost anything count for clinical experience?

 

[236116]

It all counts b/c you are immersing yourself in that world. That is the point. And doing boring crap anyway. Hello, scut!

 

[surftheiop]

so even if the only thing they had availible was working the gift shop, that would count as clinical experience?

Ideally id like to get patient transport but I think thats a popular one.

 

[Decicco]

LizzyM: "If you can smell the patients, it is a clinical experience"

working in the gift shop is not clinical experience

 

[236116]

so even if the only thing they had availible was working the gift shop, that would count as clinical experience?

Ideally id like to get patient transport but I think thats a popular one.

yes, b/c you'll be seeing the human side of it.

 

[kltdd]

Hopefully it all counts because I am stuck in the office at the hospital I volunteer at and barely get to do anything really "clinical"...🙁

 

[dragonfly99]

<Hopefully it all counts because I am stuck in the office at the hospital I volunteer at and barely get to do anything really "clinical"...>

Don't announce that fact in your application.

One of the problems w/trying to do clinical volunteer work is the lawsuit mania we have in this country. Also, nurses have a legally well defined scope of practice which they jealously guard, and have made it impermissible for even other patient care workers (i.e. patient care techs, etc.) to do many particular functions within the hospital. I am sure this is even worse than when I was trying to do hospital volunteer work (pre year 2000). My friend got yelled at for holding up an IV bag at the request of a hospital worker...apparently only LPN's and RN's were allowed to hold those in their hands...for whatever reason.

Try not to get stuck in the gift shop. If you can't get out of there via the usual channels, see if you can find a doctor or RN you can approach about creating your own volunteer opportunity.

 

[mfrizzo3]

Hopefully it all counts because I am stuck in the office at the hospital I volunteer at and barely get to do anything really "clinical"...🙁

So you are hoping that being stuck in a office counts as clinical experience when you yourself admits you barely get anything clinical. Not all volunteer work has to be clinical, but all clinical experience should involve something clinical. 😱 Your experience will just go into a different block in AMCAS.

 

[kac714]

see if you can volunteer in the ER. its boring most of the time, but i saw some pretty cool cases.

 

[surftheiop]

see if you can volunteer in the ER. its boring most of the time, but i saw some pretty cool cases.

I hear this alot, but what do you actually do- Help people fill out the paperwork or something?

 

[kltdd]

So you are hoping that being stuck in a office counts as clinical experience when you yourself admits you barely get anything clinical. Not all volunteer work has to be clinical, but all clinical experience should involve something clinical. 😱 Your experience will just go into a different block in AMCAS.

Yep, I think as dragonfly99 wrote they are afraid of lawsuits/ territorial. I just started a few weeks ago so hopefully as they become more comfortable with me they will give me more responsibilities... I do have some clinical experience at a nursing home already so....

 

[scarletgirl777]

I hear this alot, but what do you actually do- Help people fill out the paperwork or something?

Take blood and urine specimens to the lab, put clean sheets on the stretchers/beds

 

[jinx520]

Also, nurses have a legally well defined scope of practice which they jealously guard, and have made it impermissible for even other patient care workers (i.e. patient care techs, etc.) to do many particular functions within the hospital.

Don't forget the senior citizens who volunteer all day, every day. They can be really possessive of the few patient care opportunities that exist. And it's hard to begrude them, b/c they are retired and trying to remain active and useful. And most of them are really sweet.

I asked to volunteer in the OR of a hospital that wasn't particularly busy, but had a few physician's groups who used the OR on a regular basis for day surgery. I did a lot of paperwork and brewed a lot of coffee, but I did get the opportunity to help the patients settle into the OR and to wheel them out when they were discharged. And there was enough work to share between me and the seniors.

 

[Myuu]

In addition to the ER, you may want to consider outpatient services. At "my" hospital, you spend most of your time there making beds and wheeling people out, but that face-to-back-of-head interaction can be a lot more enlightening about the patients' perspectives than it sounds. I hardly ever get interaction with conscious patients in the ER. All hospitals are different, though, so ask around and see what your local setup will allow you to do.

 

[tdittyx2x3]

I don't think anyone in this thread straight out said they didn't like the whole clerical volunteering in the hospital business, but I really can't see how it would be enjoyable. There are many ways to volunteer and/or get actual clinical experience without having to do paperwork or answer phones.

Try something new. Suggestions are all over this website. 👍

 

[surftheiop]

thanks for the replies everyone

 

[Pedsbro]

Gift shop volunteering is NOT clinical experience. Just want to make that clear. ER volunteering is nice, because while your actual duties are mostly clerical, generally if you let the docs/residents/nurses know you're interested in medicine and what they do, they will let you know get up close and personal with patients. It's up to you to make it into a shadowing opportunity... I volunteered in an ER for 6 months and saw some really interesting stuff, all because the attendings and residents were more than happy to have me tag along when they went to each patient after I announced my interest. They might not all be receptive, but all you need is one.

 

[Lukkie]

try to volunteer in something like medical/surgical post-op. you'll probably get a lot of patient contact, i know i did.

 

[Typical Premed]

If you are looking for more patient interaction as a hospital volunteer you may want to try volunteering at a pediatric hospital. Im an ER volunteer at a pediatric hospital and some of my duties include greeting patients and escorting them to their rooms and getting them settled in, providing entertainment to the patients (ie. toys, dvds, etc.) and getting to spend some quality time with the patients if their parents need a break (ie. working on arts and crafts with them, playing games, watching movies, etc.). Not only is this experience more enjoyable and rewarding than most hospital volunteer positions but it provides a ton of opportunity for interaction with patients and their families.