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“Visiting the hospital is not on anyone’s wish list,” volunteer Karen Paillon says, “It can be stressful for parents and scary for children. I greet everyone with a smile and always give the kiddos a little extra.”
Information Desk volunteers like Karen are often the very first people that families and visitors encounter at La Rabida. “I consider it a privilege to be the first point of contact in welcoming families and guests,” volunteer Gladys Smith says, “It is gratifying to have the tools and resources to assist patients, families and others to their destination in the hospital.”
Information Desk volunteers greet visitors, respond the questions, answer phones, direct parents and children to the Acute Care Clinic and the Inpatient Unit, inform staff that scheduled appointments have arrived and dispense passes to those going beyond the lobby area.
As Smith says, “The Information Desk is a place where connections are made with a smile.”
Dennis Caldwell, who supervises the Information Desk volunteers reports that, “The compassion that the volunteers show to the people we serve is an inspiration for us all. They treat everyone with respect and kindness, no matter what the situation is.”
Karen Paillon shares this story from one particularly inspiring day volunteering at the Information Desk:
“A whole kindergarten class came in at Christmas. They had just gone shopping for hats and gloves for patients and families. They sat on the floor in the reception area and there was an impromptu question/answer session. A little girl said her big brother had been a patient once and that this was a good place because her brother was better. The tears were falling down my cheeks.”
If you or someone you know might be interested in becoming an Information Desk volunteer, please contact Adam Spencer, Manager of Volunteer Services, at Email: aspencer@larabida.org or 773-256-5985.
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