Hospice Staff and Volunteers

Abstract

Volunteers form the backbone of the American hospice movement. By providing a critical mass of caregivers and office assistants, volunteers have enabled many hospice programs to grow and develop over time. Although hospice volunteerism is generally viewed positively, administrators arc becoming increasingly open about the frustrations they experience using volunteers. Major areas of concern include the recruitment, retention, training, and reliability of volunteers. This article examines issues concerning volunteer-staff dynamics. Specifically, the authors focus on volunteers' training, assessment, stress, and working relationships with hospice staff. On the basis of an exploratory study of 17 volunteers and 25 staff, the researchers found statistically significant differences between staff and volunteers across a variety of factors, including role perceptions, responsibility expectations, training requirements, and work satisfaction. The authors offer practical suggestions to hospice administrators for improving communication and interaction between staff and volunteers and for reducing stress and eventual burnout in both groups.