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Tzu
Chi Hospital Volunteer Service Team
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| (Translated by Douglas Shaw) |
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In 1986, Tzu Chi General Hospital established
the Volunteer Service Team. Tzu Chi commis-sioners from every
part of the island commit themselves to volunteer service. They
shuttle back and forth throughout the hospital, acting as bridges
between medical personnel and patients. The volunteer service
is a special feature of the Tzu Chi hospital. A dharma master
from Holland once described the vests that they wear as "mini-cassocks."
Volunteers think of themselves as "mobile information desks."
Master Cheng Yen praised them as "the software of the Tzu
Chi hospital."
Before commissioners can become hospital volunteers,
they must first undergo a period of training. The volunteer service
can be divided into four sections: educational service, clinical
service, patient service, and support service.
The concrete services that the volunteers
provide are: 1) working in conjunction with medical personnel
to care for patients; 2) giving patients spiritual support or
financial help; and 3) giving patients information about hospital
procedures.
