Training Hospice-Palliative Volunteers for Cultural Competence (Research, Video 1:42)

Hospice-palliative volunteers and other healthcare workers can operate with a higher level of confidence and efficiency when they display cultural competence during their interactions with diverse patients. This competency is greatly needed to foster increased participation of ethnic groups that continue to underutilize hospice-palliative services.

A study in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) examined the current state of culturally competent care. Using 14 hospice volunteers, researchers from the Department of Sociology at McMaster University did in-depth interviews with them to gain more understanding about their cultural competency status and challenges such as misunderstandings resulting in hurt feelings. Volunteers revealed the following in their responses to the questions:

1)   Volunteers with weak levels of cultural competence said they encountered cultural clashes with patients.

2)   Volunteers revealed that they needed more education in cultural competence as part of their hospice training.

3)   There was a lack of ethnic, cultural, and linguistic diversity among the hospice volunteers.

While this research was done with a small group, it serves as an example to hospice-palliative organizations and other healthcare institutions that cultural competence issues must be addressed. Ongoing staff education is a necessary component for the successful delivery of healthcare. In addition to improving patient-staff relations, eliminating cultural insensitivity and miscommunication will positively impact patients’ quality of life.

This video explores the importance of cultural competence training for workers in a cross-cultural healthcare environment. Examples of various cultural groups and how to interact with them are explained:

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback at many booksellers and in e-book form at Amazon and Barnes and Noble booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Hospice-Palliative Volunteer Ethics Boundaries (Research)

Does your hospice-palliative care organization have clear guidelines regarding boundaries for volunteers? If not, consider creating or modifying them to prevent future problems. Mount Allison University in Canada researched this ethics concern with two community-based hospice programs. When 79 hospice-palliative volunteers responded to a 27-item Boundary Issues Questionnaire, they indicated the boundary of each item. These are examples of one item in each of the three major categories:

Definite Boundary Issues

(things volunteers should never do).

1) Accept money from a patient or family.

Potential Boundary Issues

(things volunteers should stop and think twice about doing)

2) Accept a gift from a patient or family.

Questionable Boundary Issues

(things volunteers should be aware of doing)

3) Give your home phone number to a patient or family.

Would you agree with the three major labels? What are other items that volunteers might place under the three various categories? It would be interesting to know what volunteers perceive as their individual items of concerns and how they differ or agree on the boundaries relating to various items.

This research confirms the need for official boundary statements. This is information volunteers can benefit from through discussion and implementation with written policies. Keep in mind that having no clear boundary policies may lead to negative consequences later.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback at many online and offline booksellers and in e-book form at Amazon and Barnes and Noble booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Hospice-Palliative Care Volunteers: Why Families Like Them (Research, Video)

You’re a hospice-palliative care volunteer. You were drawn to serve patients and their families during  journeys of terminal illness. You do your best, always hoping you have fulfilled their needs. Best of all, many seem to appreciate your being a part of their lives.

What is it about hospice-palliative care volunteers that makes them appealing to families? Researchers at Mount Allison University in Canada asked this same question and went straight to family members for answers. A survey of 22 family members whose deceased loved ones had used the services of a hospice-palliative care volunteer reported these results in order of importance:

1)   Opportunity to take a much-needed break from the demands of caring for their loved one

2)   Emotional support

3)   Shared time with the volunteer

4)   Information provided by the volunteer

Family members were satisfied with volunteers and rated them highly. The majority of families (85%) rated their volunteers as well trained. In addition, family members (95%) did not feel that volunteers had invaded their privacy or patients’ privacy. Sounds like lots of volunteers are successful at fulfilling many patient and family needs through service. This video poem expresses the win-win experiences of many hospice-palliative care volunteers:

Frances Shani Parker, Author

"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”

“Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog”