Diana

What all do you guys include when you do volunteer orientation? The one I am doing on Thursday is for church volunteers who are eager to get started but have never volunteered in long term care. they will be conducting Bingo, church services, visits, etc. They want to be as useful as possible! A dream come true! Now I just want to make sure it is long term volunteering by giving them a proper orientation to start with! Don't worry, I am checking with human resources for all the paperwork and background checks they have to do. Any help is MUCH appreciated!

I think what is also important to mention is that not only do we work for the residents by passing out the mail, providing activities. We also work alongside other employees who we can utilize to assist us even for small things, like pass out mail. While on maternity leave, the receptionist passed out mail every chance she got - she enjoyed getting away from the phones! the better we treat other employees, the more they will help out, even in their spare time!

I agree with limitation by every form of its word, especially when we are all so busy with our regular duties! One way that administration is able to get us to perform duties that aren't necessarily ours is by using this phrase "...and other duties as assigned." This is what is in our job description (so important for us to review every once in a while) at the very end. Gets us every time! I am glad that you stood up for yourself, though! In activities, it is hard to conduct an activity when you are changing diapers!

I work in a SNF facility that houses 60% long term care and 40% short term (rehab, etc). We are located downtown next to 3 major hospitals so we get a huge amount of turnover. My 14 day assessments usually have to be done in less than 5 for the medicare assessment to be acurate. Half of my day is nothing but paperwork! For a 131 bed facility and such a high turnover rate, I am the only person in Activities. Talk about job security! I hope when you guys look at your assistants you appreciate what you have! Some of us aren't that lucky! Thanks for letting me vent! Diana in San Antonio

You know, I just had a baby, and at the hospital they served me and my husband a special meal. What made it so great was that it was served with a nice tablecloth, pretty folded napkins and beautiful glassware. It could have been any old food, but the presentation was outstanding! In fact, before my husband knew the food was for us, he saw the food outside out room and thought "what ritzy person just had a baby?" then he found out it was ours - he was tickeled! So even if dietary can't help out, maybe you could learn a few napkin folding techniques and catch the tray before it hits the birthday person and I bet other staff would also get involved! Good luck!