Volunteering during pandemic?

[HaoChengRen]

Hey everyone!

I'm sure everyone can relate to this, but COVID-19 messed up a lot of plans I had for this semester and this summer. I had a very steady food pantry thing going that I really enjoyed, but since my school closed and I had to leave the state, that obviously ain't happening anymore... at least until next year.

Does anyone have any ideas what to do during the pandemic in terms of volunteering? I really wanna do something useful because sitting at home doing homework all day makes me feel worthless, but leaving the house for anything non-essential is also frowned upon. All the food pantries I could find nearby are not accepting volunteers for obvious reasons, and neither are hospitals near me.

It's hard wanting to help but not knowing how or even if I should, since I don't want put anyone in danger. Any recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks again guys!

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[deleted555445]

I've been volunteering with the Red Cross screening blood donors for temperature and symptoms - not exactly clinical but pretty close and a good way to feel like your helping in the pandemic.

 

[deleted944422]

My city and a lot of others have started doing the COVID-19 Mutual Aid group/program. Different cities have different duties; mine is just picking up groceries and doing other hospitality needs for those that request it. If the virus is serious in your area, though, you might not want to go out for this anyhow...

 

[anonnnnnnnnn123]

I'm not part of this forum lol (pre-optometry student here) but I've seen people sewing masks for hospitals that request it if that interests you. Just a note that not all hospitals are taking these so call to make sure or find an organization

 

[WaveRace]

Time to get creative! Useful volunteering if you’re currently on a stay at home order can take many different forms. Tutoring people is huge right now (college kids all the way down to elementary). Tons of people are off school in many states and parents want tutors. You can do that on skype. Collecting/making PPE for donation is another great use of time. You could volunteer for a phone crisis line.

Most importantly: stay safe and healthy! Good luck and keep your head up.

 

[WildWing]

Here are some additional resources if you are looking to volunteer to support efforts to fight COVID-19

1. While at Home: Take Action | While at Home
Provides list of things you can do while under stay-at-home orders.

2. The Human Diagnosis Project is looking for volunteers to translate data:
The Human Diagnosis Project (Human Dx) has designed a COVID-19 self-assessment tool (hdx.org/covid), a free public service that provides critical information on how to manage this rapidly evolving pandemic to reduce the burden on our healthcare system. Users can quickly find out if they need medical care, testing, or self-isolation in less than three minutes. The user-friendly assessment tool has been accessed over hundreds of thousands of times and is currently available in Spanish, Italian, and Greek, and will soon be available in over a dozen languages. This assessment tool is based on current guidelines from WHO, CDC, NHS, and other leading medical institutions, and has been evaluated by physicians from our global community of tens of thousands. As COVID-19 guidelines evolve, the assessment tool is updated in real-time.

We would like your assistance in reaching out to medical students who would be interested in volunteering their time to Human Dx to assist with the translation of the assessment tool into other languages. We understand many trainees are unable to participate on the frontline at this time, and this is a great way for them to help make an impactful change by translating the tool and making it more accessible to millions of people across the world.

You can contact them here: The Human Diagnosis Project