Hospice Volunteers

“Volunteering in hospice has made me grateful for even the small things in my life." ~ EvergreenHealth Hospice Volunteer.

Volunteers are integral members of the hospice care team and help support patients and their families. Our specially trained volunteers assist staff and welcome guests at the hospice care center in Kirkland and visit patients who live at home or in facilities in communities throughout King and Snohomish Counties. 

What would you do as a hospice volunteer? Hold a hand, watch television, listen to music or sing old songs, cook a meal, do some light housekeeping, listen to someone’s life story, run errands, go for a walk or wheelchair stroll, give an exhausted caregiver a short break. It’s the simple act of just showing up that can make a difference.

Volunteers are trained and supported by the volunteer coordinators and the hospice team.

Steps to becoming a hospice volunteer

Requirements

• If you have experienced a loss, we ask that you wait a full year before beginning this process.
• Be at least 21 years old
• Time commitment of one year; weekly commitment varies by position
• Provide documentation of your immunization history, to include:
  • 2-step TB skin test
  • Tdap (whooping cough) booster
  • two MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccinations OR positive blood titers
  • two Varicella (chicken pox) vaccinations OR a positive blood titer
  • Hepatitis B series and/or a positive blood titer
  • current year flu shot

The Process

• Submit our online application*
• Provide two personal (non-family) or professional references
• Complete an interview. Paperwork at that time will include providing Social Security and driver's license numbers.
• Pass Washington State Patrol and nationwide background checks
• Complete the Hospice Volunteer Core Training and required position-specific training
• If your position requires driving, your driving record must be reviewed and approved
• Submit documentation of required immunizations.

* If you are unable to submit an application online, please email us at LstHospiceVolunteers@evergreenhealth.com or call 425.899.1070 and we will have an application packet mailed to you.

Please add our email address LstHospiceVolunteers@evergreenhealth.com to your safe sender list. If you don’t hear from us within two weeks, please check your junk folder and contact us.

Volunteer Training Dates 

We are still accepting volunteer applications!

In person volunteer training is not possible at this time, but we are delighted to offer a 4-week virtual series on Wednesday afternoons starting Wednesday, February 3, 2021. Attending all four sessions is necessary to complete the required Hospice Volunteer Training.

Although the training will cover all of the volunteer positions we typically offer, right now, only our phone-based positions are available.

At this time, we are looking for volunteers for the following positions:

• Bereavement callers – Volunteers make telephone calls to the bereaved around the three month mark after their loss. We want families to know that we are still thinking of them, remind them of the bereavement support options we provide, and provide a compassionate and empathetic listening ear.
• Tuck-in callers – Calls are made to patients in private homes every Thursday to “tuck them in” for the weekend. The volunteer makes sure that the patient has all of the medications they might need for the weekend. Often, the volunteer speaks with the caregiver and as they call mainly the same people every week, they are able to develop a rapport and that acts as another layer of support.
• Caregiver callers – This is our newest position, and one that many of our long-time Home Care volunteers have pivoted to since the stay at home orders. Volunteers are assigned to a patient’s caregiver for the duration of the patient’s time on our service. The caregiver may live with the patient, or be dealing with the stress of managing their care remotely, unable to visit in person. Caregiver call volunteers offer support and empathy to those doing the very difficult job of caregiving.

If you are still interested in joining us for training in anticipation of in-person volunteering, or would like to volunteer for one of our phone positions, please complete our application and two references. We will set up a time for a virtual interview with you, so that we can get to know one another, introduce you to EvergreenHealth Hospice and our volunteer program, and answer any questions you might have.

We are looking to schedule additional trainings in 2021 so we encourage you to keep checking our website for future training dates.

Interested in learning more about hospice volunteering?

We're happy to answer your questions about becoming a volunteer at EvergreenHealth Hospice! You can call us at 425.899.1040 or submit your questions via our online form.

Learn more about our hospice volunteer program in this story from Natural Awakenings magazine (go to page 13).