Volunteers at Reading Hospital

Benefits of Volunteering

For patients, family members, and friends walking through our doors, it is not an average day. Volunteers help make these days better. If you are 15 years or older, you may apply. Whether you are walking a patient to their appointment, a visitor to their loved one, knitting a shawl, or serving in a patient care unit, as little as two hours per week spent volunteering can enrich your life by:

• Positively impacting your physical and mental health
• Positively impacting the quality and longevity of your life
• Connecting with your community on a deeper level

Types of Volunteering

In-service

In-service volunteers serve by helping patients, visitors, and staff at Reading Hospital and Reading Hospital Rehabilitation at Wyomissing. They also help with special projects and events.

• Chaplain volunteer. Provide supportive visits to patients and families for ongoing emotional or spiritual support.
• Chi and tea cart. Boost colleague satisfaction by thoughtfully distributing snacks and drinks throughout the hospital, fostering a positive and supportive work environment.
• Child Development Center assistant. Help our childcare classroom teachers.
• Doctor's Office Building ambassador. Greet and escort patients, their families, and guests to their destinations.
• Library support. Perform data entry, report generation, reconciling of the library’s online catalog, shelf reading, and labeling print journals.
• Musician. Play music to enhance the atmosphere of public areas or visit patients to provide comfort through music.
• No One Dies Alone Companion (NODAC). Offer presence and comfort to individuals in their final moments.
• Patient companion. Visit hospitalized patients to provide comfort by engaging in conversation and participating in fun activities.
• Pet therapy. Engage with hospital patients and staff through meaningful therapy animal visits, in full accordance with established procedures. All participating animals must hold certification from an approved therapy animal organization.
• Pharmacy. Stock freezers with ice packs, vials, and lids.
• Reading Hospital School of Health Sciences. Greet visitors, answer phones, take messages, support events, assemble information packets, and scan student records.
• Rehab Activities volunteer. Engage with patients during group activities and one-on-one room visitations such as painting and singing.
• Wayfinding. Guide patients and visitors throughout the hospital.
• Other opportunities on medical surgical floors. For example, medical division assistant volunteer.

Off-campus

Off-campus volunteers serve by sewing at home, sometimes participating in special craft projects. Placements are dependent on the hospital’s needs.