Veteran-to-Veteran Volunteers - When one Veteran talks to another, stoicism and secrecy dissolve

Save to Favorites

Qualifications:
Veteran volunteers must be a Veteran. A Veteran is defined as a person who has served in a
military force. Veteran volunteers must have a professional appearance, maintain own good
health, respect patients’ confidentiality, and be reliable, honest, dedicated and flexible. Veteran
volunteers must be aware of special circumstances and situations of patients and caregivers
and be compassionate and good listeners.

Why is it important to have Veterans care for Veterans at the end-of-life:
* Military training and the culture of stoicism can often prevent Veterans from sharing
difficult experiences.
* When one Veteran talks to another, stoicism and secrecy dissolve.
* Veterans share a common language and code of conduct.
* Sharing supports life review and healing!

Suicide
Veterans are at a higher risk of suicide. Suicide is the intentional taking of one’s own life.
Suicide is also something you can help a patient avoid. Hospice nurses and social worker are
trained to assess all patients’ suicide risk; however, it is important for volunteers to be familiar
with the risk of suicide, as Veterans will often share more with a Veteran volunteer than he/she
may with other hospice professionals. This subject can be controversial with several states
allowing assisted suicide at the end of life. Veterans may see suicide as their way to maintain
control at the end of life, but the role of hospice professionals is to address emotional, spiritual,
and physical suffering and explore the option of living life as fully as possible.

Hospice volunteers are compassionate individuals who provide comfort and support to patients facing a life-limiting illness. Volunteers offer specialized skills and support outside of the clinical team.

There is no one-size-fits-all to what makes a hospice volunteer. Some volunteers participate because they want to give back to the community or they might have a special talent that brings joy to others. However, each volunteer makes a significant impact on patients and their families.

Volunteers ensure that the patient and family’s needs are met in a variety of ways. This can be through companionship, assisting with everyday tasks or providing respite time to a patient’s caregivers. Hospice volunteers can also make an impact by assisting the hospice agency with administrative duties.

This can look like:

• Sitting with a patient, socializing and providing a listening ear
• Helping with general office support
• Running errands for patients and families
• Writing a journal or life story with patients as a memento for the family
• Playing games, reading or listening to music with patients
• Walking or caring for family pets
• Assisting with light house cleaning
• Providing bereavement support for family members

Hospice volunteers have the unique opportunity to provide a type of care that is companionship-based. This non-clinical support oftentimes helps patients remain in high spirits. It might even give them or their loved ones a break from thinking about their illness.

For some, being a hospice volunteer is all about spreading joy in the ways you know best - whether that is through laughter, friendship or using your talents and hobbies to make others smile.

It is clear that hospice volunteers can make significant impacts in the lives of patients and loved ones navigating the end-of-life journey. If you feel called to do the same, consider becoming a hospice volunteer.

To volunteer with Enhabit, you must:

• Be least 14 years old
• Have experienced no significant personal loss in the past year
• Complete a criminal background check and tuberculosis test (paid for by Enhabit)
• Live within 60 miles of the Wichita office