Client Care

Last Friday’s visit to Baycrest was too short but also very sweet. It was sort of like having just one Ferrero Rocher. I had the opportunity for the first time to participate in the large Oneg Shabbat service held on the first floor in the Worstman Hall, adjacent to the cafeteria. I think what made this service so exiting was that the clientele was larger and so there were more individuals able to verbally communicate. Also for the first time I spoke with a man who used to be a patient at Baycrest but was there just to volunteer with his wife. He was wheelchair dependent and he did make it known to me that he might become a patient again in the near future. I found it interesting that he did not speak of becoming a patient at Baycrest with any trepidation. Maybe he was confident that his stay wouldn’t be permanent. Equally likely is that his experience at Baycrest was so positive that he just didn’t mind being there. I haven’t been volunteering at Baycrest for very long but in the time that I have spent there I haven’t heard any complaints from the clients about either the staff or the hospital. On the other hand I have heard many positives about the nursing staff and I have seen expressions of happiness and gratitude. The environment is so positive that it is easy to forget that I’m volunteering in a traditionally high stress environment. My mom works in a hospital which I have visited on occasion, and I find that her hospital runs at a much faster pace than Baycrest. Also, the care appears to be more transactional even at the nursing level (cause and effect maybe?). And let’s not mention the Bureaucracy. So what really makes religious institutions more compassionate, more apt to slow down the pace and take time for patient?  I think it has to do with who is in charge and the policies they set forth. For instance, although workplace bullying is not commonly tolerated aversion towards bullying may be stressed more often in religious institutions as a result of religious belief. Moreover, I believe that secular institutions (e.g. a hospital) operate with one purpose-to provide a service in exchange for something tangible. This something could be money, public peace, future benefits etc. Whereas religious institutions may hold the intangible to an equal or even greater regard. The intangible can be as simple as client satisfaction.

Just an update on the museum project: It has been postponed until the 26^th of this month but classes finish soon after that so I figure I won’t be participating. So now I need to contact my volunteer co-ordinator to ensure that I can complete the 40 hour requirement. Wish me luck!