Engaging in altruistic healthcare can be rewarding. I am reminded of my daughter who throughout her career has donated her t
reply to the discussion below why you agree or disagree.
Engaging in altruistic healthcare can be rewarding. I am reminded of my daughter who throughout her career has donated her time and skills in Haiti and several countries in Africa. She has felt like these opportunities enabled her to explore her career and the path she was ultimately taking in public health and food security. These experiences also allowed her to build on her classroom experience to round out her knowledge and fill in some gaps. Further, she feels like these learning opportunities enabled her to work more closely with physicians and public health officers that she would not be able to access in an entry level position. These opportunities were were valuable for skill development and cultural learning.
However, much of her research has touched on the fact that these volunteer experiences can cause harm to the population if nor provided with the proper preparation and appropriate reasons. Bauer (2017) explains that volunteer experiences that occur without regard to the sustainability and the cultural appropropriatness of the care given can create dependence on volunteer service or leave patients at a disadvantage. For example, while my daughter was volunteering with Mercy Ships she heard a story about a man who had received a donated surgery from the team. In his post-op he was told to not lift heavy objects. His interpretation of these directives were that he could never lift heavy objects again. He sold his carpentry tools and lived in destitute poverty before her team performed proper follow up. Another large part of Mercy Ships that has developed since her working with them is training local healthcare workers to perform the same procedures visiting or volunteering healthcare workers could perform. In so doing, they are increasing local capacity and lessening the dependence on volunteers.
Nurses have an ethical responsibility to care for their clients and patients. I would argue that this ethical responsibility extends to support care where necessary. I especially enjoy the study that observed that communities where nurses are engaged in multiple outlets, patients feel more supported and nurses feel more prepared to provide necessary services (McCullom et al., 2017). This community engagement includes learning, working, and volunteering in some capacity. During these volunteer opportunities, nurses have the opportunity to offer services to people who might not otherwise be able to afford them. However, it is important to remember that nurses need some down-time. The time they use volunteering may be draining or overwork already overworked nurses.
The nurses I oversee are volunteering to assist the county health department with COVID testing. This is not within our immediate scope of care, but it allows the nurses who work in our program to benefit the community in a new way, learn from another agency, and participate in another program of care. Further, it is interesting that we are taking our skills and knowledge and applying it to an environment very different from what we are used to. Our practice includes meeting clients one-on-one in their homes and following them over two years of care. While volunteering we are working a high-volume, fast-paced environment in which we only encounter clients for a few minutes. In so doing we are educating them on the virus and explaining the testing process. Thus far it has been valuable. During our reflection sessions, I have learned that the nurses on my team appreciate this experience and are advancing their knowledge and practice. McDowell (2002) argues that volunteer opportunities help nurses become closer to the community in which they work. In order to become stronger advocates for members of the community, volunteerism can support a partnership for better communication and a better understanding of the diverse populations with the community.
References
Bauer I. (2017). More harm than good? The questionable ethics of medical volunteering and international student placements. Tropical diseases, travel medicine and vaccines, 3, 5.
McCollum, M., Kovner, C. T., Ojemeni, M. T., Brewer, C., & Cohen, S. (2017). Nurses improve their communities health where they live, learn, work, and play. Policy, Politics, & Nursing Practice, 18(1), 7-16.
McDowell, B. M. (2002). The advocate: Volunteering–a community partnership. Journal for specialists in pediatric nursing, 7(3), 121.
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