Volunteer Programs
With a strong commitment to volunteerism and community service, Transitions relies on support from volunteers who want to share their time and talents to help provide the highest quality of care to our patients. Volunteers are a vital part of the patient care team. They visit with patients, assist their families, and help with projects at our administrative offices. The comfort that a volunteer can bring to the patient and family is like no other. Volunteer visits offer patients companionship, boost their self-esteem, and decrease loneliness. Each gesture of kindness and compassion makes a meaningful impact on both our patients and their families. Our volunteers are also greatly impacted by their service, gaining a true feeling of making a difference, valuable experience in the healthcare field, and learning from our qualified and dedicated team members.
Opportunities are available in our volunteer program across all of our service areas and office locations, including Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. Sign up to volunteer today.
Contact us for more volunteer information:
877.726.6494
[email protected]
Companionship
Companionship Volunteers visit bedsides to offer comfort, compassion, and understanding to hospice and palliative patients. They are an essential part of our care team and provide valuable social and emotional support to our patients. Volunteers usually visit 1-3 patients at the same location (assisted living facility, skilled nursing home, etc.) depending on the volunteer’s availability and the needs of the patients. Most visits last about an hour and are organized by our Volunteer Coordinator.
Volunteer today to be a companion to a grateful patient.
Each patient is unique and has different interests. Some common activities include:
Reading or watching TV together
Sharing stories
Listening to music together
Going for a stroll outside
Singing classic songs or hymns
Playing games and puzzles
Testimonies from our Team
“I remember my patient’s husband telling me how much she enjoyed music so I moved her chair over to the piano and placed her hands on the keyboard. I put my hands on top of hers and pressed her fingers down to play notes. She stared at her hands as she heard each note and would occasionally look up at me as well as if she was amazed and enjoying this activity.”
Stephanie
Transitions Volunteer
Family Support
Being a caregiver can be a lot of work, so sometimes the patient’s family needs additional support beyond patient care services that Transitions provides. Often, the caregiver is putting so much of their time and energy into assisting their loved one, that they don’t take time for themselves. The Family Support Volunteer can offer the caregiver a much needed break while helping them out with the things they may not have had time for because of their commitment to their loved one undergoing care. Even the simplest of family support can go a long way in easing the stress a caregiver may be going through during a difficult time.
Volunteer today to offer family support to patients loved ones.
Vigil Volunteers
Transitions believes that no one should die alone. When our staff anticipates a patient is transitioning, they volunteer to sit bedside around the clock to support the patient and their family at the time of death. This provides the family with needed emotional and social support, and can make this difficult experience easier simply by being present.
Our Vigil Volunteers are an integral part of the care team in this sense, and their impact on our patients and families is indescribable. A Vigil Volunteer will be notified when a patient in their area is actively dying and will be asked if they are available to volunteer for a 2 or 4 hour shift to keep the patient company in their final hours. Due to the importance of this commitment, it is essential that Vigil Volunteers are reliable and fully understand the dying process. Hence, all of our Vigil Volunteers begin as Companionship Volunteers. Companion volunteers can elect to become a Vigil Volunteer after three months of service and additional training once they are ready.
Volunteer today to sit with patients during their end of life transition.
Testimonies from our Team
“I am visiting her twice a week as often as possible and every time I come, she dictates her journal to me. She is writing a book as she calls it, for her 3 boys and 1 grandchild. It is very powerful to hear her life’s story.”
Sally
Transitions Volunteer
Office Assistance
Office support is always needed! Volunteers can support our teams at any corporate or regional office in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, or Pennsylvania. If you like to file and organize, would be interested in learning about the business side of hospice, and would like to gain valuable experience in an office environment – we would love your help!
Are you a high school or college student interested in gaining internship experience? Learn more about Transitions Internship Program.
Tasks include:
Filing patient records
Building patient binders
Compiling admission packets
Building training manuals
Copying and organizing
Making people smile daily
Assisted Animal Volunteers
Volunteer with your registered therapy animal! Animal Assisted Volunteers make loving companions for our hospice and palliative care patients.
Animal Assisted Volunteers provide companionship and therapeutic support to patients who love animals. Animals must always be accompanied by their human handler and will only visit those patients who have agreed to animal-assisted volunteer visits.
Before bringing a pet to visit a hospice patient, handlers must first complete the volunteer application and our volunteer training program to become a Companion Volunteer. After that, they may apply to begin bringing their pet as a part of their volunteerism. All animal/handler teams must have documentation of registration with a recognized pet therapy organization, liability insurance, and all appropriate vaccines. In order to make visits, animals must be in good health and well-groomed.
Volunteer today to provide therapeutic support with your registered therapy animal.
We Love our Volunteers
