Volunteering in healthcare is often underestimated, but it is critical for receiving feedback from patients allowing to improve their conditions. In the case of hospitalized patients, it is easier to track their progress and satisfaction with their everyday routine, whereas patients staying at home require particular attention. Last Friday, I worked with people and their families to learn about their perceptions of current conditions.
My task was to attend people who should be monitored by in-house caregivers to ensure the excellent quality of provided care. I was performing the work on my own, but this fact did not affect productivity as I managed to gather sufficient information about the patients. I asked them many questions about their bathroom needs, responses to call light requests, pain management, side effects of prescribed medications, and rest time.
One of the most interesting aspects of my work was the active participation of the patients’ families who were willing to provide extensive answers to my questions. I was pleasantly surprised by their support, which allowed me to receive all the necessary information and come to the conclusion that the assistance of families contributes to the creation of a safe environment. Therefore, I should say that such visits are a good method to learn about the patients’ conditions and possible changes that are required.
This volunteering experience allowed me to put the theoretical knowledge from the course on patients staying at home and their needs into practice. Indeed, the people in this category should be regularly monitored as they have no opportunities to provide feedback as hospitalized patients do. Thus, regular visits of a nurse would solve the problem and contribute to the creations of optimal conditions for them.