With heart and dedication: volunteer work at Zollikerberg Hospital

What does your work as a volunteer involve?

Exactly two years ago, I registered for voluntary service at Zollikerberg Hospital and had my intake interview with the volunteer manager and the head of the Specialised Nursing Department (SPS). It was clear to me right from the start that I was interested in end-of-life care among the various volunteer activities. After an introductory taster session, I was allowed to visit the patients independently. The SPS team welcomed me warmly and supported me in my new experience. As someone from outside the industry, employed 100% in the management of a chocolate factory, the activities and processes of a hospital were unfamiliar to me. But from day one, it felt like I had never done anything else. In my volunteer work, the triangle between patients, relatives and carers is of central importance.

I try to find enough time for each of these three stakeholder groups to identify their needs and support them with an open ear, my smile and my gestures in this challenging situation.

How did you hear about volunteering with us and why did you decide to do it?

I looked at various hospitals in my area for volunteer work in the field of end-of-life care. Zollikerberg Hospital impressed me with its very well thought-out volunteer organisation and also makes it very easy for interested people who work and have children to get involved on an individual basis. I was immediately impressed by the hospital's warmth and the philosophy that patients are at the centre of everything.

What does a typical day at Zollikerberg Hospital look like for you?

I visit the patients on the SPS about twice a week on Wednesday and Sunday afternoons.

The first thing I do is go to the ward room, where I am given an overview of the patients. Name, year of birth, brief diagnosis and room number are noted. I receive a briefing from the nursing service for each patient. This includes recommendations, condition, needs, advice or even specific wishes. This is a very valuable exchange that also shows me how I can take some of the pressure off the carers.

There is no such thing as a typical day at the SPS. Behind every door is a human fate that has to deal with an incurable disease or imminent death, relatives who are involved in this process and the patients who have to find their way through one of these stages of physical suffering or the attempt to alleviate it. As soon as I open a door to a patient, I go in with absolute neutrality and leave my needs outside. I rarely introduce myself with the words "I am a volunteer". Despite society's high recognition of voluntary services, I feel that the rejection rate as a volunteer is high. But with the words: "Hello Mr Meier, how was your day?", "Hello Mrs Pfister, what can I do for you?" or "Hello Mr Sommer, how's the pain?" and a compassionate charisma, I achieve a very deep encounter with complete strangers.

I also fetch heat packs, take walks, give patients a personalised room fragrance, have deep conversations with them and very often also with their relatives, pick a few flowers in the hospital garden, make them tea, give them a massage, hold their hand, comfort them in their suffering and listen to their stories. The needs are as individual as each person's fate.