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Do IT this week: Layering
Dedicated helpers give free perks health-care providers otherwise could not afford to offer patients
By Cheryl Powell
Beacon Journal medical writer
POSTED: 07:56 p.m. EST, Nov 23, 2009
Since 1963, Thelma Whitman has worked countless hours at Wadsworth-Rittman Hospital without collecting a dime.
She's fed patients, made beds, run the gift shop and flipped burgers at an old-fashioned grill operated and staffed entirely by the hospital's Auxiliary.
Whitman is among about 155 Auxiliary volunteers who recently donned '50s garb and celebrated the group's 50th anniversary with the snack bar's loyal customers.
Whitman, 85, of Wadsworth hasn't kept track of her hours over the years.
''I like to be busy,'' explained Whitman, dressed in a poodle skirt, bobby socks and golf shoes that bore a striking resemblance to saddle shoes. ''I like people. I like the hospital.''
Wadsworth-Rittman along with hospitals big and small rely on volunteers to do everything from updating families and delivering flowers to walking out discharged patients and raising funds.
''They do things we just couldn't get done without them,'' said Jim Pope, president of Summa Wadsworth-Rittman and Barberton hospitals. ''They become part of the hospital family. On every level, no matter where you are in the building, you're likely to run into a volunteer.''
Volunteers are the heart of every hospital.
These dedicated men, women and teens provide behind-the-scenes help, family support and special extras for patients that hospitals otherwise likely wouldn't have the time or money to offer.
Akron General Medical Center recently received a thank-you note from an elderly women who waited alone while her husband had surgery.
The woman was impressed that two volunteers saw her sitting alone and offered to take her to lunch in the hospital cafeteria and keep her company, said Christine Hinman, director of volunteer services at Akron General.
When Hinman shared the letter with the volunteers, one of them replied, ''You know, that could have been my mother.''
''They are kind of the eyes and ears, and they really identify needs of our patients and families,'' Hinman said. ''They're right there in the front lines.''
An increased interest
Several local hospitals reported increased interest in volunteering.
With the ailing economy, more unemployed people now are donating their unexpected free time, Hinman said.
''These are very motivated people who are not going to sit at home, and they are out volunteering,'' Hinman said. ''
Medina Hospital also is getting more recent graduates who want to volunteer because they're having a hard time finding a job, said Nicole DeAngelis, the hospital's coordinator of volunteer services.
Summa Health System is seeing more new retirees seeking to donate time, along with college students, particularly those who want to pursue a career in the medical field, said Angela Hayes, director of community reinvestment for Summa.
''What we're seeing are a lot of highly skilled volunteers,'' she said. ''A lot of these baby boomers are very well-educated people, and they want to feel involved. You'll see a lot of the boomers volunteer in the cancer center or a cause that's closer to their heart.''
The value of a volunteer
The time that volunteers provide is worth millions of dollars to hospitals.
The dollar value of volunteer time is $20.25 per hour as of 2008, according to an estimate from the Independent Sector, a national group for the charitable community.
The figure is based on the average hourly earnings of production and nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls, plus an additional 12 percent for benefits.
Summa's six owned or affiliated hospitals, along with Hospice of Summa, received 293,431 donated hours from volunteers last year, according to Hayes. That equates to more than $5.9 million worth of volunteer time.
''You'll find that volunteers do a lot of wheelchair transport,'' she said. ''They are helping at information desks, helping families with way-finding and finding their loved ones. They do clerical support, compiling inpatient charts, record keeping. They assist with environmental services. They're really in every area of the hospital.''
Those donating their time, however, don't replace paid workers, Hayes said.
''They provide complimentary services that we wouldn't be able to pay someone to do,'' she said.
Volunteers with the Mended Hearts Program at Summa Akron City Hospital, for example, sew heart-shaped pillows for open-heart surgery patients and deliver them before the operation, Hayes said.
Affinity Medical Center in Massillon relies on a group of retired nurses who volunteer to provide health screenings each month.
''Their kind spirits and willingness to help others are just two of the outstanding qualities our volunteers exhibit,'' said Susan Koosh, the hospital's vice president of marketing and community relations.
At Akron Children's Hospital, volunteers run thousands of errands and deliveries, give updates to anxious parents while young patients are in surgery and provide little extras to make hospital stays easier for the kids, said Judy Pedrotty, the hospital's director of volunteer services.
Volunteers lead Doggie Brigade pooches through the hospital on visits, sew ''Pinky the Puppet'' for all hospitalized patients, create blankets for the children and even help young patients make cookies at their bedside.
''We try to really concentrate on a lot of things that help families or help patients,'' Pedrotty said. ''We're very blessed.''
On a recent afternoon, hospital volunteer Mary Leuca, 59, of Fairlawn pushed her ''cookie cart'' into Madison Lanier's room.
Madison, 8, of Streetsboro was in the hospital because of complications from asthma. But that didn't stop her from enthusiastically rolling the sugar cookie dough on her hospital tray and cutting them out with kid-sized cookie cutters shaped like a dog, star, ice cream cone, heart and truck.
The enticing smell of baking cookies filled the room a few minutes after Leuca stuck Madison's creations into a toaster oven on the cookie cart.
Madison's mother, Thi Anna Lanier, said the visits from hospital volunteers helped make the stay better for Madison.
''It makes the kids feel so much more comfortable,'' she said, ''like it's not the hospital setting.''
Cheryl Powell can be reached at 330-996-3902 or chpowell@thebeaconjournal.com.
Since 1963, Thelma Whitman has worked countless hours at Wadsworth-Rittman Hospital without collecting a dime.
She's fed patients, made beds, run the gift shop and flipped burgers at an old-fashioned grill operated and staffed entirely by the hospital's Auxiliary.
Whitman is among about 155 Auxiliary volunteers who recently donned '50s garb and celebrated the group's 50th anniversary with the snack bar's loyal customers.
Whitman, 85, of Wadsworth hasn't kept track of her hours over the years.
''I like to be busy,'' explained Whitman, dressed in a poodle skirt, bobby socks and golf shoes that bore a striking resemblance to saddle shoes. ''I like people. I like the hospital.''
Wadsworth-Rittman along with hospitals big and small rely on volunteers to do everything from updating families and delivering flowers to walking out discharged patients and raising funds.
''They do things we just couldn't get done without them,'' said Jim Pope, president of Summa Wadsworth-Rittman and Barberton hospitals. ''They become part of the hospital family. On every level, no matter where you are in the building, you're likely to run into a volunteer.''
Volunteers are the heart of every hospital.
These dedicated men, women and teens provide behind-the-scenes help, family support and special extras for patients that hospitals otherwise likely wouldn't have the time or money to offer.
Akron General Medical Center recently received a thank-you note from an elderly women who waited alone while her husband had surgery.
The woman was impressed that two volunteers saw her sitting alone and offered to take her to lunch in the hospital cafeteria and keep her company, said Christine Hinman, director of volunteer services at Akron General.
When Hinman shared the letter with the volunteers, one of them replied, ''You know, that could have been my mother.''
''They are kind of the eyes and ears, and they really identify needs of our patients and families,'' Hinman said. ''They're right there in the front lines.''
An increased interest
Several local hospitals reported increased interest in volunteering.
With the ailing economy, more unemployed people now are donating their unexpected free time, Hinman said.
''These are very motivated people who are not going to sit at home, and they are out volunteering,'' Hinman said. ''
Medina Hospital also is getting more recent graduates who want to volunteer because they're having a hard time finding a job, said Nicole DeAngelis, the hospital's coordinator of volunteer services.
Summa Health System is seeing more new retirees seeking to donate time, along with college students, particularly those who want to pursue a career in the medical field, said Angela Hayes, director of community reinvestment for Summa.
''What we're seeing are a lot of highly skilled volunteers,'' she said. ''A lot of these baby boomers are very well-educated people, and they want to feel involved. You'll see a lot of the boomers volunteer in the cancer center or a cause that's closer to their heart.''
The value of a volunteer
The time that volunteers provide is worth millions of dollars to hospitals.
The dollar value of volunteer time is $20.25 per hour as of 2008, according to an estimate from the Independent Sector, a national group for the charitable community.
The figure is based on the average hourly earnings of production and nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls, plus an additional 12 percent for benefits.
Summa's six owned or affiliated hospitals, along with Hospice of Summa, received 293,431 donated hours from volunteers last year, according to Hayes. That equates to more than $5.9 million worth of volunteer time.
''You'll find that volunteers do a lot of wheelchair transport,'' she said. ''They are helping at information desks, helping families with way-finding and finding their loved ones. They do clerical support, compiling inpatient charts, record keeping. They assist with environmental services. They're really in every area of the hospital.''
Those donating their time, however, don't replace paid workers, Hayes said.
''They provide complimentary services that we wouldn't be able to pay someone to do,'' she said.
Volunteers with the Mended Hearts Program at Summa Akron City Hospital, for example, sew heart-shaped pillows for open-heart surgery patients and deliver them before the operation, Hayes said.
Affinity Medical Center in Massillon relies on a group of retired nurses who volunteer to provide health screenings each month.
''Their kind spirits and willingness to help others are just two of the outstanding qualities our volunteers exhibit,'' said Susan Koosh, the hospital's vice president of marketing and community relations.
At Akron Children's Hospital, volunteers run thousands of errands and deliveries, give updates to anxious parents while young patients are in surgery and provide little extras to make hospital stays easier for the kids, said Judy Pedrotty, the hospital's director of volunteer services.
Volunteers lead Doggie Brigade pooches through the hospital on visits, sew ''Pinky the Puppet'' for all hospitalized patients, create blankets for the children and even help young patients make cookies at their bedside.
''We try to really concentrate on a lot of things that help families or help patients,'' Pedrotty said. ''We're very blessed.''
On a recent afternoon, hospital volunteer Mary Leuca, 59, of Fairlawn pushed her ''cookie cart'' into Madison Lanier's room.
Madison, 8, of Streetsboro was in the hospital because of complications from asthma. But that didn't stop her from enthusiastically rolling the sugar cookie dough on her hospital tray and cutting them out with kid-sized cookie cutters shaped like a dog, star, ice cream cone, heart and truck.
The enticing smell of baking cookies filled the room a few minutes after Leuca stuck Madison's creations into a toaster oven on the cookie cart.
Madison's mother, Thi Anna Lanier, said the visits from hospital volunteers helped make the stay better for Madison.
''It makes the kids feel so much more comfortable,'' she said, ''like it's not the hospital setting.''
Cheryl Powell can be reached at 330-996-3902 or chpowell@thebeaconjournal.com.
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