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Hospice volunteer information

Volunteers for Hospice of the Central Coast are always needed. A desire to help and a little time to spare are all you need to volunteer. If you want to help those who turn to Hospice for help in living well with their illness.

For more information, call the Hospice Support Services in Monterey at (831) 649-7755.

Hospice Volunteer Opportunities

Hospice of the Central Coast, a department of Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, provides a comprehensive end-of-life care program. Hospice Support Services provide comfort and support to patients and their families during the illness as well as after the death. The hospice volunteer program is mandated by Medicare regulations and National Hospice guidelines. Our volunteers are an integral and indispensable part of the team needed to provide quality end-of-life care in the community.

Hospice volunteers receive 25 hours of training prior to working with patients. The training includes an orientation to hospice philosophy; understanding the patient's world; an exploration into personal readiness for the work; communication and listening skills; bereavement support for grief/loss.

Volunteers receive on-going support and education from staff, volunteer mentors and a variety of community based consultants.

Hospice trained volunteers are able to provide support in the following areas:

  1. Patient/Family Support (in private homes and facilities including Westland House): Volunteers provide comfort and emotional support to patients and their families; provide caregiver respite, as well as companionship and socialization to patients.
  2. Vigiling Service: Volunteers sit vigil for patients the last 24-48 hours of life. 
  3. Volunteer Chaplains: Volunteers provide spiritual support and occasional memorial services for both hospice benefit patients and clients on the Transitions program.
  4. Complementary therapies: Volunteers who come to us with special training in massage therapy, Healing Touch, reflexology or any credentialed modality can provide service to our patients and caregivers for symptom or stress management.
  5. Bereavement Services: Volunteers provide one-on-one support to patients and their families, make bereavement follow-up calls and visits, and with additional training, can facilitate support groups.
  6. Transitions Program: Volunteers provide support in home or facility to clients with a prognosis of one year or less. May offer a longer-term volunteer/client relationship.

With specific orientation or training volunteers may provide service in the following areas:

  1. Transportation Program: Volunteers provide support while driving patients who have a life threatening diagnosis to medical appointments.   Volunteers are also needed to provide support and schedule transportation to medical appointments for patients facing life threatening diseases.
  2. Administrative Volunteers assist staff with various projects.
  3. Greeters at Westland House Volunteers assist visitors upon arrival to Westland House or provide support to staff with deliveries to patients or administrative tasks as needed.
  4. Bereavement Group facilitators: all of our support groups (time limited and ongoing) are co-facilitated by two specially trained volunteers and supported by professional staff.
  5. Griefbusters: Volunteers are specially trained to provide grief & loss support to children aged 5-18.

For further information please call Hospice Support Services at 649-7755; for specific patient care volunteer opportunities please contact Penney Gaines, Patient Care Volunteer Coordinator at 649-7732.