Is volunteering at an Alzheimer Center looking after Alzheimer afflicted individuals consider clinical hours? The reason I am asking is because it's not in a hospital and there aren't doctors around. Not a lot of "clinical" activities since it is a day care for Alzheimer patients but I thought I'd ask anyway just in case I am wrong.
Volunteering at Alzheimer Center
- Thread starter shffl
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I don't think it is a replacement for getting some inpatient experience around physicians, so maybe you can spend a year or two volunteering within a hospital setting. However, depending on the activities you do, that could be a much more beneficial experience for your personal development (and, subsequently, for your application).
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Just because physicians aren't around doesn't mean that clincal care isn't being extended to the individuals. I'm sure there's plenty of nurses around who are carrying for those individuals. Your work is definitely clinical. It's more clinical than my volunteer desk work at the ICU, and I see physicians and residents all day long. You'll have something to talk about when it comes to patient care, that's for sure. 
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An Alzheimer's Unit is a clinical environment. Doctors do round in nursing-home type residential facilities, though not often, but probably not in a daycare-only unit. Alzheimer's patients, being generally older, are likely to have other medical conditions as well, that will need to be considered when you're providing care. IMO, it is a clinical experience.
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Alzheimer's day caren, IMHO, is not clinical care so Catalystik and I disagree and you are likely to find disagreement among adcom members on this subject.
Alzheimer's patients go about their lives in daycare setting where they enjoy music, exercise, conversations, & meals and may get personal care services such as foot care and hairdressing. Just because someone has a chronic illness, their every waking moment is not "clinical care". (If someone is vent dependent, etc, that's a different story and a very different setting).
It would be like saying that pre-school is clinical because the little people there are seen regularly by their pediatricians and some of them have chronic conditions such as asthma and allergies for which they get treatments.
Alzheimer's patients go about their lives in daycare setting where they enjoy music, exercise, conversations, & meals and may get personal care services such as foot care and hairdressing. Just because someone has a chronic illness, their every waking moment is not "clinical care". (If someone is vent dependent, etc, that's a different story and a very different setting).
It would be like saying that pre-school is clinical because the little people there are seen regularly by their pediatricians and some of them have chronic conditions such as asthma and allergies for which they get treatments.
