Hospice group seeks volunteers to support patients, caregivers

SALISBURY – As the population ages and more people choose end-of-life care at home, hospice providers in northwest Connecticut are seeking volunteers to offer companionship and support to terminally ill patients and their families.

Jean Osuch and Karen Jax Giarnese, both nurses with Visiting Nurse and Hospice of Litchfield County, spoke at the Scoville Memorial Library Wednesday, May 13, about the organization’s volunteer program, describing volunteers as a vital part of hospice care.

Osuch said that volunteers are “an integral part” of the patient’s interdisciplinary team.

Volunteers provide companionship for the terminal patient. Roles can include sitting with a patient, talking, listening, reading or simply provide a comforting, human presence.

Giarnese said volunteers find the work rewarding.

“It’s a meaningful part of living,” she said. “It taps into something that may not come out in other places. Having a volunteer present also means the family members and caregivers – often the same people – can run errands or simply take a break.

Volunteers can also help with office tasks or bereavement support. Some patients enlist volunteers to record life stories or organize letters and photographs.

Orientation and 15 hours of online training are provided to volunteers, who are also asked to attend monthly meetings for continued education and support. Schedules are flexible.

“In an otherwise bleak situation, it’s a bright spot in the week” for the patient, Giarnese said.

For more information, visit www.vnhlc.org/giving/volunteer/.