Supporting your community in so many ways

St. Clair Health has always worked to assure a strong, healthy community. Identifying and addressing unmet needs has been part of the St. Clair mission since our founding in 1954—and remains so today.

We’re a community-based health system with goals that include promoting health, improving access to healthcare, and providing benefits to the community as a whole. St. Clair envisions our community as a place where healthful lifestyles are the norm. Where residents of any neighborhood have easy access to health education, disease prevention, screenings, and primary care.

As much as our healthcare system supports the community, our community also supports us by volunteering their time. We have a volunteer program with over 100 individuals from surrounding neighborhoods that offer their time to help patients and their families at our facilities. Our group of volunteers contribute approximately 90,000 hours of service each year to ensure St. Clair can provide expert care to our patients every day.

“The volunteers are highly critical to the overall patient experience and play such a vital part in so many areas throughout the Hospital,” says Samantha Walker, Volunteer and Guest Services Manager at St. Clair Health. “Volunteers not only give their time to us for free, but they go above and beyond the call of duty every day by delivering personalized attention and service to patients and staff. Our volunteers range in age and background, which creates a dynamic and diverse team of individuals who collectively come together to give back to their community and neighbors in a time of need.”

There are a wide range of volunteer opportunities throughout St. Clair. Whether volunteers would like to serve as an escort, perform clerical duties, or support patients in the cancer center by providing encouragement and comfort items throughout their treatment—we have something for everyone. St. Clair also has a Junior Volunteer Program for local students ages 14-18 who assist the Outpatient Surgical Center with various projects after school and during summer months.

The Volunteer Program has plans to expand to clinical areas to provide non-clinical support such as diversional activities for patients throughout their stay. We also plan on re-instating the Supportive Visitor position, along with the PT/OT non-clinical volunteer positions. It’s highly encouraged for the staff and volunteers to speak to the Volunteer Office if they have ideas or areas they feel would benefit from the service of volunteers.

“The passion comes from the people,” says Walker. “The fuel to the fire are the patients, fellow volunteers, and staff who collectively impact your day to day by allowing our volunteers to be a part of their journey. There are days where you can see firsthand how your work positively impacts the patients, and that is the fire that fuels my passion.”

According to Walker, “Our volunteers are one of a kind.” Each volunteer who has been through our program or currently serves in some capacity brings such a unique perspective to the Hospital that we greatly appreciate. The fact that our volunteers show up at least once a week is an incredible commitment that shouldn’t go unnoticed.

Volunteering in general has so many positives: it creates community within your organization, volunteers feel fulfilled, and it allows them to learn new skills in a comfortable and supportive environment. Volunteering is such a rewarding experience for all involved!

The nonprofit industry is such a special area to be in. It’s one of the few occupations, besides healthcare and emergency management, that you can directly impact someone’s life and be around to see it. If you would like to give back to your community and neighbors as a St. Clair volunteer, click here to fill out our volunteer application online. If you have additional questions, please call the volunteer office at 412.942.2085.