“Our volunteers keep giving people hope,” says WayPoint's volunteer services coordinator.
Anyone who doubts the power that volunteering can have on the lives of others need only look at Doug Jones in action.
The volunteer has been singing and playing guitar for patients at Waypoint Mental Health Care Center in Penetanguishine on and off since 2018. More recently, he has been performing for inpatients at the Geriatric Psychiatry Horizons Program, a program for older adults diagnosed with mental illness and young people with dementia.
“A lot of them can't communicate,” said Magdalena Stapinski, clinical manager for the Horizon program, “but some of them can actually sing. They get up and dance with our staff.”
Music calms patients down and gives them something to focus on for a while, she added, and “staff enjoy singing and dancing with patients, which makes their work lives better.”
Jones describes his music as simple, soothing and interactive, and says it brings people out of their shells.
“A woman in a wheelchair, who couldn't communicate, started clapping and swaying to the music,” Jones said. “A man with unkempt hair, who couldn't speak, started dancing as I played an Elvis song. He came over to the woman in the wheelchair, took her hand and started dancing with her. It was a touching moment.”
Jones, a retired dentist from Waterloo who now lives in Tiny Township, often plays in the atrium entrance, treating patients and staff to live music, has performed at summer bonfires and has also performed at two Christmas parties.
Jones coordinates her volunteer hours with Diane DeRoches, WayPoint’s talent and volunteer services coordinator.
“We're glad to have Doug here. It takes a special person to volunteer, but it's a huge benefit in a psychiatric hospital,” she said. “Our volunteers give people hope to stay alive.”
Doug says that despite living in a structured hospital environment, he is motivated to bring fun and lightheartedness to people. He gets a lot out of his volunteer work and seeing his music make people happy makes him happy too.
“When you connect one-on-one with someone, it makes them feel good. When you pay attention to them and play a song they know, it goes deeper into their mind and evokes deeper memories,” he said.
Desroches said Waypoint Hospital is still rebuilding its volunteer base. Before COVID-19, the 315-bed hospital had 130 volunteers. Because of the sensitive nature of hospitalized patients, it wasn't until last June that they were able to welcome volunteers back.
More volunteers are needed for music, arts, recreational therapy, pet visitation, gift shop and research.
“Volunteers are important to building a better future for our hospital and staff,” she added.
When someone volunteers with Desroches, she organises a meeting. Volunteers must complete online documentation and a police vulnerable sector check before they can begin work. Therapy animals must be accredited by an organisation such as St John Ambulance. Volunteers are then assigned a staff mentor to coordinate.
“They're not alone. They have support,” Desroches said.
College students volunteer not only to gain experience but also to clarify their career path, Desroches said: For example, one social work student volunteered with Recreation and realized she loved the work.
“She came to me and said, 'I thought I wanted to be a social worker, but now I want to go into recreational therapy,'” she said.
The hospital puts in roughly 3,500 volunteer hours a year, but Desroches said the impact goes far beyond that: When Jones plays for an hour, he gets to play in front of an audience of 20 people, and everyone benefits, she said.
For more information about volunteering at Waypoint, contact Diane DeRoches. [email protected] Or, call the hospital at 705-549-3181.
