Non-clinical hospital volunteering?

[cellar_door]

I hope this doesn't sound completely idiotic but I am wondering if not all hospital volunteering experiences count as "clinical." Right now I am volunteering at a hospital, but I'm not volunteering in a medical department. I just tutor hospitalized kiddos. Should I be actively trying to find a volunteer position somewhere else, if at all possible?

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[302356]

Volunteerism is certainly not frowned upon, regardless of whether it is clinical or not. That being said, tutoring children is certainly not "clinical" because that term denotes being involved with patients, even if you're only observing or helping in a marginal way by assisting the nurses as they tend to the patients. Most hospitals do have opportunities to work in specific departments, such as the emergency department or the children's wing, and that might be beneficial if you're trying to gain clinical experience as well. But working at the hospital gift shop certainly won't count as "clinical" volunteerism as some younger folks think.

 

[Ismet]

Not all hospital volunteering is clinical. Volunteering in the gift shop is not clinical. Delivering flowers is not clinical. What you describe is not clinical, but it's still volunteering and it sounds like a valuable experience.

Through clinical volunteering you should be able to see how some aspect of healthcare is accomplished. Even though you might only be bringing blankets and pillows to patients in the ED, you can observe ED flow, help nurses with tasks, talk to patients, and even segue into shadowing doctors.

 

[ProspectiveKidd]

Not all hospital volunteering is clinical. Volunteering in the gift shop is not clinical. Delivering flowers is not clinical. What you describe is not clinical, but it's still volunteering and it sounds like a valuable experience.

Through clinical volunteering you should be able to see how some aspect of healthcare is accomplished. Even though you might only be bringing blankets and pillows to patients in the ED, you can observe ED flow, help nurses with tasks, talk to patients, and even segue into shadowing doctors.

That being said, tutoring children is certainly not "clinical" because that term denotes being involved with patients

I volunteer at a pediatric hospital and I spend time with the patients doing various activities and just hanging out with them both on and off the unit. I have always considered this to be clinical. Since OP is in a hospital working with patients, I don't see how it isn't considered clinical. He is still gaining experience working with patients.

"Volunteer clinical positions do not typically involve direct medical care, since volunteers are neither trained nor paid, but they can still interact with patients. Hospital emergency departments, assisted-living centers, hospices, medical centers, or other programs sponsored by your university (internships, externships, medical missions) are great places to look. - See more at: http://www.kaptest.com/blog/med-sch...h-experience-med-school/#sthash.LHi3oz9z.dpuf"

 

[Ismet]

tutoring (working with and being around) patients is not clinical?

I volunteer at a pediatric hospital and I spend time with the patients doing various activities both on and off the unit. I don't see how this is not considered clinical.

It's somewhat of a grey area for me. Perhaps I shouldn't have said it's blatantly not clinical, because if you're going by the "if you can smell patients it's clinical experience," then sure. But by tutoring kids are you seeing how the hospital runs? Gaining some insight about medicine and your future role in the field? I would expect to see some more clinical experience that would demonstrate that you have some understanding of what you're getting yourself into. Basically I wouldn't advise that this be the only clinical exposure the applicant has.

 

[ProspectiveKidd]

It's somewhat of a grey area for me. Perhaps I shouldn't have said it's blatantly not clinical, because if you're going by the "if you can smell patients it's clinical experience," then sure. But by tutoring kids are you seeing how the hospital runs? Gaining some insight about medicine and your future role in the field? I would expect to see some more clinical experience that would demonstrate that you have some understanding of what you're getting yourself into. Basically I wouldn't advise that this be the only clinical exposure the applicant has.

Ok I see what you're getting at. I think mine is more 'clinical' as i'm working around nurses as well and also see the things that they do with the patients. But if nothing else I think the OP is still getting some relevant experience working around different types of patients.

 

[Ismet]

I volunteer at a pediatric hospital and I spend time with the patients doing various activities and just hanging out with them both on and off the unit. I have always considered this to be clinical. Since OP is in a hospital working with patients, I don't see how it isn't considered clinical. He is still gaining experience working with patients.

"Volunteer clinical positions do not typically involve direct medical care, since volunteers are neither trained nor paid, but they can still interact with patients. Hospital emergency departments, assisted-living centers, hospices, medical centers, or other programs sponsored by your university (internships, externships, medical missions) are great places to look. - See more at: http://www.kaptest.com/blog/med-sch...h-experience-med-school/#sthash.LHi3oz9z.dpuf"

From the same website you quoted, "good clinical experiences will teach you the role of the health care professionals in patient care and demonstrate their interactions with each other and the patient." This is what I'm getting at.

 

[LizzyM]

And as I've been saying for years based on how I've seen adcom members assess the ECs, " If you are close enough to smell patients, it is a clinical experience."

Remember that.

 

[ProspectiveKidd]

From the same website you quoted, "good clinical experiences will teach you the role of the health care professionals in patient care and demonstrate their interactions with each other and the patient." This is what I'm getting at.

At the same time i think if you are able to fulfill that guideline through shadowing various doctors and healthcare professionals (as we should be doing anyways), then various other forms of volunteering should suffice.

 

[Ismet]

At the same time i think if you are able to fulfill that guideline through shadowing various doctors and healthcare professionals (as we should be doing anyways), then various other forms of volunteering should suffice.

Not completely necessary to shadow if you have sufficient clinical exposure otherwise. It's clinical exposure we're looking for, not necessarily clinical volunteering AND shadowing. There are many ways to obtain clinical exposure.

 

[LizzyM]

Not completely necessary to shadow if you have sufficient clinical exposure otherwise. It's clinical exposure we're looking for, not necessarily clinical volunteering AND shadowing. There are many ways to obtain clinical exposure.

That said, if you are like thousands of other applicants and your volunteerism involves tutoring or playing with pediatric patients, you would be wise to have shadowing as well. One gives you an idea about what it is to serve patients with your own heart and hands and the other gives you some insights into the physician's role in the health care team.

 

[Goro]

What you're doing is perfectly fine. You're showing Adcoms that you like being around sick people.

I hope this doesn't sound completely idiotic but I am wondering if not all hospital volunteering experiences count as "clinical." Right now I am volunteering at a hospital, but I'm not volunteering in a medical department. I just tutor hospitalized kiddos. Should I be actively trying to find a volunteer position somewhere else, if at all possible?

 

[ChrisMack390]

I'm not sure what the confusion is in this topic...

"Hospitalized Kiddos" = Patients

Patients = Clinical volunteering

 

[hopefuldoctor93]

@Goro @LizzyM
I am currently working as a scribe in a children's ER and will have worked there for a year and a half by the time I apply in 2017. Do I need to do any clinical volunteering or will volunteering with the disadvantaged communities in my city be a better use of my time?

 

[Goro]

I'm still having trouble wrapping my mind around what a scribe actually does. On the surface, it seems more shadowing than patient contact. Yes, you can smell the patients, but you're not interacting with them, it seems.

Thoughts?

@Goro @LizzyM
I am currently working as a scribe in a children's ER and will have worked there for a year and a half by the time I apply in 2017. Do I need to do any clinical volunteering or will volunteering with the disadvantaged communities in my city be a better use of my time?

 

[starspells]

I'm still having trouble wrapping my mind around what a scribe actually does. On the surface, it seems more shadowing than patient contact. Yes, you can smell the patients, but you're not interacting with them, it seems.

Thoughts?

@Catalystik says its one of the best clinical experiences you can have! Also I don't know how it is for every scribe position, but whenever I go to a doctor that has a scribe they are the ones I talk to and they input the information regarding medical history, complaints, symptoms, etc.

And as a scribe you're still close enough to smell the patients.

 

[LizzyM]

"close enough to smell patients" means that you need not be touching them but at least be in very close proximity.

With so much being done on an electronic device these days, a scribe basically records exam findings, clicks the boxes on electronic forms to order tests, imaging studies and referrals and so forth at the direction of the physician. This frees the physician to concentrate on the physical examination without constantly handling the touch screen (which would be a cesspool of bacteria if used while conducting a physical) or taking time after the exam to do that as used to be the case with paper.

I'd say that in addition to having an idea of what a physician does and what sick people look like and they way they behave, which you've got covered with the scribing job, something that shows that you care about those in need in your community would be good and it can be clinical or non-clinical (e.g. working to help immigrants, illiterates, the homeless, kids without role models).

 

[Catalystik]

@Catalystik says [scribing is] one of the best clinical experiences you can have! Also I don't know how it is for every scribe position, but whenever I go to a doctor that has a scribe they are the ones I talk to and they input the information regarding medical history, complaints, symptoms, etc.

And as a scribe you're still close enough to smell the patients.

The kind of scribe you describe would certainly get an excellent clinical experience. Not so if the position is one of a "Remote Scribe," where the scribe listens in with audio headphones from another location and records notes from what's heard. I've also learned that some sites explicitly forbid the scribe to interact in any way with a patient, requiring then to be observers/recorders only.

 

[starspells]

The kind of scribe you describe would certainly get an excellent clinical experience. Not so if the position is one of a "Remote Scribe," where the scribe listens in with audio headphones from another location and records notes from what's heard. I've also heard that some sites explicitly forbid the scribe to interact in any way with a patient, requiring then to be observers/recorders only.

Oh yeah, I saw something about "telescribes" or something on some of the company websites... And I guess in many ERs it's the doc who's talking and the scribe is jotting everything down. Thanks for clarifying!!

 

[hopefuldoctor93]

Thank you so much everyone for replying! It is true that we are not supposed to be involved in "patient care".

I'm still having trouble wrapping my mind around what a scribe actually does. On the surface, it seems more shadowing than patient contact. Yes, you can smell the patients, but you're not interacting with them, it seems.

Thoughts?

That is why I am confused too. It feels like shadowing, but I feel like I am getting way more clinical experience than somebody just bringing patients back to their room. I am able to shadow a doctor while completing the whole EMR. Which means I am able to actually get the medical terminology and thought process on why we are running different tests.

"close enough to smell patients" means that you need not be touching them but at least be in very close proximity.

With so much being done on an electronic device these days, a scribe basically records exam findings, clicks the boxes on electronic forms to order tests, imaging studies and referrals and so forth at the direction of the physician. This frees the physician to concentrate on the physical examination without constantly handling the touch screen (which would be a cesspool of bacteria if used while conducting a physical) or taking time after the exam to do that as used to be the case with paper.

I'd say that in addition to having an idea of what a physician does and what sick people look like and they way they behave, which you've got covered with the scribing job, something that shows that you care about those in need in your community would be good and it can be clinical or non-clinical (e.g. working to help immigrants, illiterates, the homeless, kids without role models).

Thanks for the advice! I am trying to get involved with a food bank and special Olympics currently, so I think that should suffice.

Also Telescribes sound awful! Being able to witness bedside manner and pick the doctors brain is the best part of the job.