Volunteer
The spirit of a Hospice Volunteer comes from a genuine desire to provide comfort, peace and care to patients, caregivers and families during the end of life journey. People of all ages can become hospice volunteers, and make a profound difference in the lives of the individuals they serve.
Hospice Home Care provides many avenues for volunteers to join our teams located in five branch offices across Arkansas: Conway, Hot Springs, Little Rock, Monticello and Pine Bluff. The Corporate Office and the Comfort Care Center, both located in Little Rock, are also places volunteers are always welcome!
Whether someone wishes to volunteer directly with patients and families, or they feel more comfortable behind the scenes in an office setting, Hospice Home Care Volunteers are an integral part of how care is provided. The Hospice Medicare Benefit, established in 1983 to provide Americans with access to high-quality end-of-life-care, is the only federal benefit that requires volunteers to off-set the cost of paid staffing positions.
Hospice Home Care encourages anyone who has a heart for volunteering to give their time, talent and treasure as their heart leads them. Examples of volunteer activities at Hospice Home Care include:
- In-home/in-person family time
- Telephone calls to homebound patients
- Art / Music at the bedside for individual patients
- Companionship
- Transportation, (shopping, errands)
- Pet Therapy for individual patients
- Companion vigils (11th hour volunteers)
- Life Sketches (short stories about a patient's life)
- Direct bereavement support (telephone calls, composing notes, family time)
- Filing and copying
- Packaging patient information packets
- Baking cookies and popping popcorn
- Pampering patients by painting their nails or braiding hair
- Seasonal decorating for holidays and other projects
- Planting flowers and filling bird feeders
- Planning and preparation for 'Best Day Ever' activities for individual patients
- Arranging flowers for delivery to patients
- Preparing gifts and recognition items to encourage patients and their families
- Comfort Care Center: volunteer greeter, bedside volunteer, special project volunteer, snack cart volunteer
Hospice Home Care’s Comfort Care Center also has a ‘Wish List’ of items and activities needed for families staying with loved ones during the final journey.
Students from Hendrix College in Conway, who are planning to become physicians, recently spent a significant number of days volunteering at the Comfort Care Center. They were encouraged to think and reflect upon matters surrounding end-of-life care, and interact with patients and families. The response was incredible! Watch the video to see students, faculty, and hospice staff members share their perspectives on the experience.
