Students volunteer at hospital
Volunteers get experience in health care fields
Students donating time at Lawrence Memorial Hospital often get as much out of the experience as they put in.
Tuesday, November 13th, 2007
Ahram Han gained a new appreciation for life when she saw a patient who was paralyzed for life, yet happy to be alive and with a giant smile on his face. Han, Reeds Spring, Mo., senior, is one of about 200 University of Kansas students who volunteer at Lawrence Memorial Hospital, where students often get more than they give.
“He was basically paralyzed,” Han said. “But he still had a smile on his face. I thought, ‘I have so much more.’ Still, he was happier than I was.”
Han said volunteering at Lawrence Memorial Hospital provided both inspiring and heartbreaking experiences. She said when she was volunteering in the maternity ward a baby was born with a disability. Han said it broke her heart to escort the father to the room to see his child for the first time.
Han, who now works as a lead person for the volunteer program, helps patients move between rooms and trains other volunteers. She said it was rewarding to spend time with the patients, even though it seemed like her work was minor.
Before becoming a volunteer, students go through a brief training session to go over situations they might encounter while volunteering.
“I don’t heal them, but the little things I do make a difference,” Han said.
Tony Hoover, Wichita senior, said that it was important to remember that volunteering might not be the most glamorous job but that the little jobs volunteers performed were a huge help to the staff.
“The staff appreciates it when volunteers aren’t just sitting around but being proactive,” Hoover said. “Volunteers should just make the nurses’ and doctors’ jobs a little easier.”
Hoover said he volunteered for about two years in the emergency room. His main jobs were to make patients comfortable and assist the doctors and nurses with various tasks, such as taking patients to get X-rays. However, he said the emergency room challenged him to see how well he could handle many eye-opening situations.
Hoover said he was interested in a career in health care and he enjoyed observing the staff. He said he was impressed with the quality of the doctors and nurses and had formed close friendships with them.
“The best thing is looking at other health care professionals and learning from them,” Hoover said. “It’s neat to see people who are so passionate about what they’re doing,”
Rachel Williams, Conway, Ark., junior, said she started volunteering because a class her freshman year required it. After the experience, she was hooked and decided to continue volunteering.
Williams, a music therapy major, said she volunteered on the fourth floor, which had elderly patients and patients recovering from long-term illness or injury.
She said working with the elderly was fulfilling and had taught her a lot about life. She said a general misconception was that elderly people had to be talked to as if they were children, but she had learned that they deserved a great amount of respect.
Williams said one woman said she had been a singer and had sang for Eleanor Roosevelt.
“They’ve experienced a lot, and then I see them in that setting,” Williams said. “It makes me want to live as well as I can.”
Becki Carl Stutz, the hospital’s student volunteer coordinator, said many students were interested in the experience because they were pursuing degrees in health care. Stutz said the hospital tried to place them in areas of interest, including radiology, surgery and the maternity ward.
Stutz said volunteers worked one shift each week. Before becoming a volunteer, students go through a brief training session to go over situations they might encounter while volunteering.
She said the staff and patients appreciated the help and the interaction with student volunteers. For more information, visit the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Web site at www.lmh.org.
— Edited by Tara Smith
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