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NURSE VOLUNTEERISM

– ENHANCING LIFE AND

CAREER

No matter at what point you find yourself in your nursing career, it’s never
too early or too late to volunteer. Even a retired nurse can leverage his
or her skills to benefit others; there’s really no time in a nursing career
when you cannot imbue your life with more purpose and meaning through
volunteerism.

Nurse volunteerism in your community
Nurses tend to be givers, and, like many citizens, nurses like to give back to
society through volunteer activities.

As a nurse, you have the option of volunteering for an organization that can
utilize your clinical skills (e.g.: The Red Cross or Doctors Without Borders).
You can also choose to volunteer for an organization that simply needs
helping hands (e.g.: the local soup kitchen or animal shelter). Volunteerism
feels good, it looks great on your resume, and it brings more meaning to
your life.
Volunteering shows commitment to making a contribution to society
and taking an interest in your community. Volunteerism can be a great
networking opportunity, and it can help you to feel more well-rounded as a
person.
Nurse volunteerism in the workplace

Some nurses choose to volunteer for initiatives or committees within their
workplaces; this can be for the purpose of demonstrating commitment or
initiative as an employee, or perhaps for opportunities related to learning
new skills, acquiring new knowledge, or strengthening your resume. Magnet
or quality improvement committees are commonly of interest to nurses, as is
being involved in mentoring programs and the precepting of new nurses.
If, for example, you have talent with computers and you’d like to explore
healthcare IT before committing to a degree or certificate program, you
can volunteer for your facility’s IT department; this will allow you an up-
close view of the internal workings of IT through direct exposure. Based on
your volunteer experience, you may be offered a paid position, or you may
decide to earn an advanced degree in information technology. In this type of
scenario, workplace volunteerism can specifically influence your next career
move.

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