What exactly do you do when volunteering in a doctor’s office?

[ar707]

I’ve only volunteered in hospital settings (ER, patient floors).
The doc I’m shadowing has invited me to volunteer for him in his office and I’m wondering if the experience would be worthwhile. What has volunteering in a single clinic generally been like for you guys?

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[imbesrs]

I’ve only volunteered in hospital settings (ER, patient floors).
The doc I’m shadowing has invited me to volunteer for him in his office and I’m wondering if the experience would be worthwhile. What has volunteering in a single clinic generally been like for you guys?

I got debunked. Listen to the people below

 

[candbgirl]

You don’t need a letter except for a few schools. Ask the doc what you’d be doing. If you are doing paper work, answering phones etc you have to decide if it’s worthwhile. On the other hand , if you will be working with the doc, following patients and watching him treat these people in the office and following up in a few days/weeks it can be very beneficial. You’ll see a doc in a different light. You’ll see the doctor practice medicine in a longitudinal way. It could be very eye opening for you about how a doc really spends his days.

 

[allantois]

Absolutely nothing

 

[LizzyM]

Is this a private practice or a not-for-profit clinic? If it is a private practice, you are either doing something that the doctor can't bother to pay anyone to do, or you are taking a job from someone by doing for free what the doctor would otherwise pay to have done. In that case, who profits by your labor? If it is a not-for-profit clinic, then the labor you provide may help the clinic to stay open and to continue to serve a population that has limited means. Just something to think about. Of course, it is a different situation if your parent owns the practice and you help out as a way of helping your family member.

P.S. It is very rare to need a LOR from a physician and it is even more rare that these letters have much of value to contribute to your application.

 

[ar707]

Is this a private practice or a not-for-profit clinic? If it is a private practice, you are either doing something that the doctor can't bother to pay anyone to do, or you are taking a job from someone by doing for free what the doctor would otherwise pay to have done. In that case, who profits by your labor? If it is a not-for-profit clinic, then the labor you provide may help the clinic to stay open and to continue to serve a population that has limited means. Just something to think about. Of course, it is a different situation if your parent owns the practice and you help out as a way of helping your family member.

P.S. It is very rare to need a LOR from a physician and it is even more rare that these letters have much of value to contribute to your application.

it’s a hospital-affiliated primary care clinic in an underserved area (not inner city Detroit or anything, more a poor suburban setting)

I just want to make sure my clinical hours are “high yield” for admissions. If I could spend ~200 hours in a hospice instead I would probably rather do that if it’s going to be more meaningful.

 

[LizzyM]

Ask what you'd be doing as a volunteer. Make a judgment about what is the best for giving you a feel for what a doctor's day is like and what it is like to work with people who are not at their best because they are fearful, angry, frustrated, in pain, or otherwise suffering.