Volunteers trained in palliative care at the hospital: an original and dynamic resource.
OBJECTIVE
Volunteers trained in palliative care are increasingly present in acute care units in general hospitals. Nevertheless, there still are few available data on this topic, especially concerning the integration of volunteers outside the palliative structures. Our present study aimed to describe the experience of volunteers trained in palliative care in the context of a primary care hospital. In particular, the difficulties and the benefits of this specific position were evaluated according to volunteers' own perceptions and words.


METHOD
We employed a qualitative method. Various aspects of the volunteer's role were explored by means of semistructured questions, addressing their activity, their motivations, and their feelings. Participants were volunteers (n = 19) trained in palliative care and working at a university hospital. After giving written consent, they completed the semistructured questionnaire at home. Content analysis was used to identify the main categories of answers and the principal themes reported by the volunteers.


RESULTS
The main difficulties were related to uncertainty of the context. As every situation is different, volunteers could not define their role once and for all. However, they derived great satisfaction from their activity. A supporting frame and a good balance between constraints and autonomy were facilitating factors. Besides, the complexity related to the context contributed to make the position valuable and challenging.


SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS
Integrating a voluntary service in a primary care hospital is partly based on active participation of the volunteers in developing their position in a more adequate way. In return, this relative autonomy implies a rigorous and supportive attitude from the institution.
['Delaloye|Sylvette|S|', 'Escher|Monica|M|', 'Luthy|Christophe|C|', 'Piguet|Valérie|V|', 'Dayer|Pierre|P|', 'Cedraschi|Christine|C|']
D000328:Adult D000368:Aged D005260:Female D006295:Health Resources D006769:Hospitals, General D006801:Humans D008297:Male D008875:Middle Aged D010166:Palliative Care D036301:Qualitative Research D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires D014838:Volunteers D000078329:Workforce
General hospitals Palliative and supportive care Palliative care volunteers Role identification Volunteer satisfaction