September 6, 2016
Nolan Dyck stands in front of the emergency department at Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre. Dyck, a first-year medical student, has been volunteering in emergency department since November 2015.
Story and photo by Sarah Megran
A visit to the emergency department (ED) can be an emotional and stressful experience, particularly when one is ill or in pain. It is during such times that a smile and friendly face can make all the difference.
“Nolan really did care and want to make people’s wait times more comfortable,” says Shelbie Kendall, registered nurse, who recalls the difference volunteer Nolan Dyck made to her and her family.
It was last December when Kendall found herself in the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre (RDRHC) ED accompanying a family member. There, she saw firsthand the compassion and positivity volunteers such as Dyck bring to an unnerving environment.
“Nolan brought a sense of calm and caring throughout the ED waiting room – he even went and got a little boy some juice and an activity bag,” Kendall says.
It’s something that is important to Dyck.
“I want to ensure that everyone is able to wait in comfort and relax as much as possible,” says Dyck, 19, who has been helping patients and staff at the RDRHC ED since last November.
“Despite being unable to medically assist a patient, even just offering a coffee or talking with them for five minutes helps to show the patient that the ED is an environment of compassion where everyone there has one goal in mind – helping them to heal and get well.”
There are 26 youth and adult volunteers working in the ED at RDRHC. They are an extra set of hands and eyes, looking to help people in any way they can.
“It can be very lonely and scary in the ED and the volunteers are a friendly face that won’t poke, prod or examine,” says Andrea Lang, ED nurse and clinical liaison for volunteers at RDRHC.
But Lang says the volunteers’ role is much greater than that. “They are able to assist with equipment retrieval, supply set-ups for procedures, move and make up stretchers, and relocate patients within the department. The time volunteers give back allows doctors and nurses time for more medical-related duties.”
As for Dyck, who has just started his second year of the Bachelor of Science of Pre-Professional Medicine program at Red Deer College, the role of emergency department volunteer is one he thoroughly enjoys.
“I really enjoy interacting with the patients and taking their focus away from what brought them to the ED, even if it’s just for a moment,” he says. “The way laughter can brighten someone’s day is unparalleled.”
