One way that hospice sets itself apart from other healthcare systems is in its integral reliance on volunteers. The Medicare Hospice Benefit requires that at least five percent of patient care hours be provided by volunteers. Recent statistics from the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) show that hospices actually exceed the required percentage, coming closer to seven percent of patient care hours, and that hospice volunteers give more than 16 million hours of service annually.
One critical role that hospices have discovered for volunteers is utilizing their ability to help bridge a cultural gap in the community. By recruiting volunteers from a diverse population, hospices can better serve their patients and families. Volunteers who can communicate in a language other than English, and who understand another culture, can be a great addition to a hospice's outreach and education efforts. We talked to such volunteers in preparation for HFA's 2009 teleconference, and were particularly moved by the contributions of the Villas, a Hispanic/Latino couple who volunteer for Capital Hospice in the Greater Washington, D.C. area.
The United States Senate recently passed the Senator Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act. The legislation, which had broad bipartisan support, would expand the ranks of AmeriCorps, which was created by President Bill Clinton in 1993 to bring federal volunteer programs under a single umbrella. In addition to adding positions to AmeriCorps, the bill would create four new service corps. The bill also seeks to encourage volunteer work among retirees.
