Sep 16, 2022 Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Seeks Volunteers for Newly Launched Hospital Elder Life Program (HELP)

Healthcare worker reading to patient

(New Brunswick, NJ) – Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) is recruiting volunteers to support its newly launched Hospital Elder Life Program (HELP).

HELP is a patient care program that provides extra attention and care to older adults admitted to the hospital. The program provides volunteers with a hands-on experience that involves direct patient contact. The goals of the program are:

  • To maintain physical and cognitive functioning throughout hospitalization
  • To prevent delirium during hospitalization
  • To maximize independence at discharge

Volunteers are trained to assist in interventions such as:

  • Patient orientation
  • Therapeutic activities
  • Early mobilization
  • Relaxation exercises
  • Feeding assistance and fluid repletion
  • Sleep enhancement

Whether it’s reading the newspaper together, engaging in conversation, providing company during a meal or taking walks, volunteers can make a significant impact in the mental, social and physical health of elderly patients at RWJUH. The volunteer requirements are:

  • 18 years or older
  • Minimum of one 4-hour shift per week
  • Commitment to 6 months of volunteering
  • Training (flexible schedule available)
  • 4 hours of classroom education
  • 16 hours of shadowing/unit training
  • Must complete hospital volunteer requirements
  • Must be reliable and be interested in helping others

For more information about the HELP program at RWJUH, Geriatric Coordinator Dhyana Velez at 732-413-7419 or e-mail: Dhyana.Velez@rwjbh.org.

To apply to become a HELP volunteer, please visit www.rwjbh.org/rwjuhhelp.

About Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH), a 614-bed RWJBarnabas Health Facility, is New Jersey’s largest academic medical center through its deep partnership with Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. RWJUH is the flagship Cancer Hospital of Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey. Its other Centers of Excellence include cardiovascular care from minimally invasive heart surgery to transplantation, cancer care, stroke care, neuroscience, orthopedics, bariatric surgery and women’s and children’s care including The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.bmsch.org). A Level 1 Trauma Center and the first designated Pediatric Trauma Center in the state, RWJUH’s New Brunswick campus serves as a national resource in its ground-breaking approaches to emergency preparedness. Learn more at www.rwjbh.org/newbrunswick.

Contact: Peter Haigney
RWJUH Public Relations
(732) 937-8568