Volunteering?

[Guest Littlebantha]

I'm just trying to get a feel for where most applicants volunteer and for how many hours a week?

 

Littlebantha

[Guest mydream88]

Hi Littlebantha,

I think in deciding where to volunteer, you should think of what really interests you and pursue something in that avenue. After all, you are not only volunteering to add to your resume . I try to volunteer as much as I possibly can with a variety of organizations. I have been advised by a medical school that it is wise to have some form of clinical volunteering under the belt i.e. at a geriatric residence, at a clinic, or visiting with patients within a hospital. Aside from this type of volunteering there are many programs for the community such as helping out at soup kitchens, the Toronto Humane Society, you get the idea. Perhaps you might even consider a volunteer job that combines community outreach with clinical volunteer experience by working at a women's shelter, or with an association that tends to victims in various situations, check the 'blue book' for a list of community services to get you started.

good luck,

mydream88

[Guest RageoftheDragon]

Take it from me, don't just volunteer randomly to try to look good. You can really get into some @#%$ stints that waste your money and do not end up looking good when they question you about it and you end up sounding like you hate volunteering.

 

As for some ideas: Stay away from St. John's ambulance volunteering, as in Saskatoon anyways the whole lot of them never stop @#%$. You could check into ride alongs with EMT's, something I believe I'll be trying soon.

 

RotD

[Guest Cranius]

hmm, I was looking at them...

 

what did you find dissapointing about st johns?

[Guest Cranius]

heh, disappointing

[Guest Littlebantha]

I'm just wondering if there's anyone out there who has already been accepted to med school that could tell us where they volunteered and the quality of the experience they had.

 

Thanks

[Guest fox]

I did many volunteer things over the years (before I was thinking of med). In high school I did peer tutoring, and then in university I volunteered for two years as an orientation volunteer, which was a lot of fun, and I also volunteered at the Women's Resource Centre (it involved counselling, providing info to people etc). During grad school I volunteered for 2.5 years in the hospital (in two different areas) and I also coached a girls' under-14 soccer team. In addition, I volunteered at the YMCA to do a nutrition/wellness program, which was quite interesting. All in all, these were interesting experiences and I am glad I volunteered my time. However, I didn't do these things as a way of getting into med school, I did them because I was interested in these areas. I was able to talk passionately about these volunteer positions during interviews as I really enjoyed them. For me, the best experience I had, which was the most rewarding and, in my opinion, really helped me get into med, was working in the hospital. I have worked in the hospital for almost two years and I have learned a great deal. Although I was paid and not volunteering, the interviewers I had at each interview were very interested in my position and how it related to my career as a physician. I am making this point because while volunteering is a great thing to do, you shouldn't do it just to get into med, and there are definitely other things you can do that will help you out.

[Guest RageoftheDragon]

I didn't know this thing blanked out curses. Oh well, I should be using better vocabulary than that anyways.

 

St. John's never really seemed that actively involved in health. At the first meeting I went to, 60% of the people were very obese. I'm not judging or anything, but if you're giving CPR to somebody, it's strenuous, and some of these people would die trying to save someone else. Also, I cannot stand it when people preach health and ignore it to that large an extent. Also, the work/activities were never that related to medicine. I gained no experience in helping anyone when I went out. The people working were generally overly jaded by it. Anyone who came that was young was only interested in getting into free events. Overall, a huge waste of my time, except to reinstate that yes, I do have to be a doctor, not some sideline wannabe.

 

Of course, now I seem jaded and angry, but I'm actually quite a happy guy!

 

RotD

[Guest thatuvicguy]

Happy Holidays Y'all (my wife and I are visiting her family in Arkansas )

 

I'm sad to say I also had a disappointing experience volunteering with St.John's Ambulance in Victoria a while back. While I did get a bit of free training, I found that the group was mainly comprised of, um, not-so-well-adjusted folks that were way too eager to be wearing their uniforms and feeling like ambulance attendants. It was a wee bit too cultish for my liking. I've met several others in Vic who had similar sentiments...

 

On a more positive note, I volunteer 3 hours/week at a local children's health centre in their mental health ward and I've found it to be a very educational and rewarding experience. I also try and help out with environmental-type events when I can, such as creek cleanups and the like. These usually fall on weekends when I can more easily squeeze them in. I feel strongly about our need to take better care of our earth and I find it really rewarding to get involved and do my part (along with recycling etc of course!).

 

With my other committments, there's not much spare time leftover but in the spring I'm hoping to help out somewhere like a soup kitchen or needle exchange. So many people are being left out in the cold by this BC Liberal government (excuse my rhetoric - of course it's not that simple, but they sure aren't helping matters!) that the desire to help out is compelling.

 

In any case, with regards to med school, I feel like no matter what I do, if I'm passionate about it I'll be able to relate the experiences most sincerely come interview time. I do take heart in the fact that this seems to be supported by the opinions and experiences of other posters.

 

All the best,

thatuvicguy

[Guest mying]

That's really sad to hear about some of the poor first impressions people had of St. John Ambulance. For the other side of things, in an attempt to prove I'm not crazy, after nine years, and even in the middle of clerkship, I'm still an active patient care volunteer. I have no doubts that experiences I had in SJA played a big role in my offers of admission to medical school. It's never been all roses, but it sure taught me how to deal with some thorns. But everything depends on the local conditions, and more so on what gets you going, how much you're willing to put up with, and what you make of it, I guess.

 

For the sake of the question about what current med students did, my apps and interviews mentioned:

-Ability Online (safe chat environment for special needs kids)

-St. John Ambulance (first aid, administration, teaching)

-Community Living (day program for developmentally disabled adults)

-School clubs stuff (College Royal, Students' Associations)

 

I think that was it. It's a long time ago now, and the list was fairly long, especially since I kept adding multiple hats in the same umbrella organizations. And let's just say my volunteer stuff probably made up for my borderline GPA.

[Guest Toonces]

Hey. I've volunteered at a variety of places, including a chronic care hospital, a soup kitchen (for a number of years..I loved it), a cat rescue (which I still volunteer for), and the Toronto distress centre. I absolutely loved volunteering for the distress centre, and it was far and away the most valuable experience in terms of medical school...I still use the skills I gained there when interviewing patients, and it really gives a good feel for what many people are going through and dealing with on a daily basis.

 

You can volunteer almost anywhere...definitely find something you love. There is a wonderful website at http://www.volunteertoronto.on.ca , I believe they have locations throughout ontario as well.