10 Interesting Facts You May Not Know About VNSNY’s Dedicated Volunteers

Happy National Volunteer Week! In honor of this celebration of the nation’s volunteers, which lasts from April 15 to April 21, here are some interesting facts about VNSNY’s own dedicated group of volunteers.

1) VNSNY’s operations are supported by 557 volunteers.

About 330 of these volunteers work with VNSNY Hospice and Palliative Care, which is required by Medicare to utilize volunteers for at least 5% of its total patient care hours. VNSNY’s other 200-plus volunteers help provide other types of support services to patients, such as phoning isolated seniors, and also assist with office operations, organizing art shows and holiday parties for our disadvantaged mental health clients.

2) All VNSNY volunteers go through a careful screening process.

“Our volunteers are reviewed and their background is checked, similar to VNSNY’s hiring process for paying jobs, to make sure they’re a good fit for the responsibilities they’ll be taking on,” says Michael Ambrosini, VNSNY’s Director of Corporate and Community Relations, who oversees the volunteer program. In addition, anyone visiting patients in their homes or in nursing facilities also has to a get a medical clearance.

3) VNSNY volunteers also receive extensive training before they start.

All volunteers must go through the same HIPAA and compliance training as VNSNY’s paid staff. Hospice volunteers also get an additional 12 hours of training on how to provide companionship to patients at the end of life.

4) VNSNY volunteers made over 12,000 patient visits to hospice patients last year.

These hospice visits included providing a vigil presence to 179 patients during their final 24 to 48 hours.

5) In 2017, VNSNY volunteers working in an office or other staff support capacity contributed an average of 228 hours in service—far above the national average.

This level of involvement is more than twice the national median for volunteers 65 or older, which was 98 hours in 2017. (The national median for volunteers under age 65 is 35 hours.)

6) A special group of volunteers knits red-white-and-blue blankets for U.S. veterans in VNSNY Hospice.

VNSNY is known for its Veterans Hospice program, but these blankets (a camouflage-themed line is also available) are a special aspect of the program. They are the work of The Big Six Towers Crocheters & Knitters Group, named for the Queens residential complex they call home.

7) In 2017, VNSNY’s volunteers donated a total of 42,205 total hours.

That’s a contribution valued at $1.1 million, according to the U.S. government.

8) In addition to contributing their time, volunteers also raise funds for the VNSNY Volunteer Benefit Fund and other programs.

In 2017, VNSNY volunteers held events and raised over $100,000 to help grow the Volunteer Benefit Fund. The fund provides resources for food, household supplies and necessities to thousands of disadvantaged patients and clients who have been identified by VNSNY’s frontline clinicians. In addition, VNSNY volunteers secured $35,000 in gifts from individual donors and corporate supporters last year. These donors included City National Bank, which partnered with VNSNY to provide $10,500 in free books to families in the VNSNY Nurse-Family Partnership program.

9) VNSNY is always on the lookout to expand its volunteer activities.

VNSNY recently began using volunteers to assist in our outreach efforts around patient experience, and we’re currently piloting home hospice visits by vigil volunteers. VNSNY’s number one need, according to Michael: “People with trained therapy animals to visit hospice patients. The positive impact that occurs when they visit people at the end of life is amazing—and we really want to make that more available to our patients.”

10) VNSNY is always looking for new volunteers.

Know anyone who might like to be a VNSNY volunteer? VNSNY’s volunteers range in age from 18 to 98 years old, and represent every walk of life, including college students, working and nonworking adults, retirees, and corporate employees. If you know someone who is interested in volunteering, please contact the Office of Volunteer Services at 212-609-1570.