Preparations are in place for Lakes Regional Healthcare’s (LRH) Summer Junior Volunteer Program. Each summer roughly 30 high school and college students assist physicians, nurses and other professional staff, and patients in the Emergency and Surgery Departments. Soon they will welcome back many of these and several more students as they receive applications and complete interviews.
“Most Junior Volunteers are interested in a career in healthcare and participating in the program gives them first-hand knowledge of whether or not they would like to pursue that path,” said LRH Vice President of Marketing and Retail Services Jennifer Gustafson. “This is our ninth summer offering the program, and many past Junior Volunteers are now nurses working at LRH and other systems such as Avera McKennan, Mayo Clinic, and Sanford or are in residency or medical school. We are honored to have been part of their journey.”
Interested students must submit an application, signed parental consent form, and written reference from a guidance counselor/advisor or teacher/professor. Then they are interviewed and possibly selected for a position. After being selected, they undergo the orientation process to include a health assessment, 2-step TB test, orientation assessment, background check, and safety and privacy regulations training. Each student must volunteer at least eight four-hour shifts in the program’s eight weeks. This program offers two Junior Volunteer positions from which to choose and students can apply for and volunteer for one or both areas.
ER Junior Volunteer
ER Junior Volunteer shifts are four hours long and around the clock. Some of the responsibilities include assisting physicians, paramedics, and nurses, disinfecting ER rooms after patient discharge, offering items to and transporting patients, and restocking supplies. Up to 25 Junior Volunteers will be selected to be in the ER.
Surgery Junior Volunteer
Five Surgery Junior Volunteers will be accepted to fill five shifts per week – all occurring from 7:30 am until 11:30 am, Monday through Friday. These volunteers will call and escort surgery patients into the Surgery Center, turn over surgery pre-op rooms, give items to patients, transport and escort patients, assist nurses as requested, and watch surgeries in real time in the OR.
The program will also provide one 4-hour hands-on educational opportunity. Gustafson said, “The Junior Volunteers will be invited to attend the optional, hands-on educational session in addition to their weekly volunteer shifts. Topics will include how to stitch, how to gown and glove, how to give an injection, and more.”
The Summer Junior Volunteer Program will run from June 2 through July 27. High school sophomores, juniors, or seniors or college students at least 16 years old by June 1 will be considered for the program. The application and parental consent form can be found at www.lakeshealth.org/volunteer and must be submitted to Gustafson by April 19. Those selected must attend a mandatory orientation session on Wednesday, May 29. For more information, contact Gustafson at 712-336-8799 or jennifer.gustafson@lakeshealth.org.
