State and national hospital systems continue to experience a shortage of healthcare workers across disciplines. In response, UW Medicine has launched a new program called Healthcare Helpers — an initiative dedicated to connecting volunteers with departments in need and to ease the strain on employees.
Healthcare Helpers encourages current employees to work shifts in positions that have been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. These roles will be offered at UW Medical Center (Northwest and Montlake) and Harborview Medical Center campuses.
Roles where extra support is needed include:
Entry Screeners: Screen visitors and patients for COVID-19 symptoms at facility entry points; offered at UW Medical Center (Northwest and Montlake) and Harborview Medical Center campuses.
Supply Chain Medical Stores Support: Helps with delivery of items, replenishing supplies, inventory, and fulfillment of bulk orders; offered at Harborview Medical Center campus only.
Patient Transporters: Coordinate care and movement of patient flow; offered at UW Medical Center – Northwest campus only. Unit Support: Assists care teams with phones, stocks supplies, transports patients/goods within hospital, assists bedside staff; offered at Harborview Medical Center campus only.
Outpatient Support: Assists in restocking supplies, transporting patients and specimens to the lab, and cleaning clinic exam rooms between patients; offered at Harborview Medical Center campus only.
Medical Assistants (MA-C): Assist patients in exam room and document patient information; offered at UW Medical Center (Northwest and Montlake) and Harborview Medical Center campuses.
Nurse Extenders (RN): Assist with dressing changes, documentation into EPIC, intake and output management, peri-care/foley management, drain management, blood sugar checks, and daily weighing of patients under the direction of a primary RN; offered at Harborview Medical Center campus only.
Care Extenders (Non-RN): Assist with wound care, patient monitoring, activities of daily living, brace care, weighing patients, transportation of stable patients in acute care, and mobilization; offered at Harborview Medical Center campus only.
Please note volunteer terms below based on your employment classification:
UW Medicine Professional Staff will not be paid. To volunteer during your normal work schedule, you must have your manager’s approval prior to confirming a shift. You may also volunteer outside of your normal work schedule without additional compensation.
UW Medicine Classified Staff will be paid for any time worked. Volunteers must request to volunteer at their designated home site of employment and within their field.
How To Sign Up:
Employees interested in participating can register at Healthcare Helpers and sign up for an available shift. Please note that roles may require additional training or qualifications. You can review these items and detailed role descriptions on our Volunteer Resource Page by selecting the quick link for “Hospital Volunteers.”
Should you require any assistance, please do not hesitate to contact the Healthcare Helpers team at uwmcovid19volunteers@uw.edu.
Thank you for your consideration of lending extra time and expertise during this challenging time. We know how stretched everyone is already feeling, but by supporting each other and putting our patients’ needs first, we continue to progress toward the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sincerely,
Lisa Brandenburg
President, UW Medicine Hospitals & Clinics
Vice President for Medical Affairs
University of Washington
Timothy H. Dellit, MD
Chief Medical Officer, UW Medicine
Vice President for Medical Affairs,
University of Washington and
President, UW Physicians
