Hospice News

Saint Barnabas Hospice and Palliative Care Center Offers Volunteer Training Throughout New Jersey

Beginning in January, the Saint Barnabas Hospice and Palliative Care Center (SBHPCC), an affiliate of the Saint Barnabas Health Care System, will host 15-hour training programs for individuals interested in becoming a Hospice Volunteer.  Programs will be hosted in Essex and Monmouth Counties.  United States Veterans are encouraged to attend for participation in the SHBPCC’s new volunteer program Veterans Helping Veterans.

The volunteer training program is designed to give participants an understanding of the needs of patients and families who are coping with advanced illness. Program topics include Hospice History and Philosophy, In the Footsteps of the Patient, End-of-Life Reactions, Personal Death Awareness, Listening, and the Nuts and Bolts of Volunteering.  Upon completion of the program, volunteers will be connected with patients in close proximity to where they reside. 

For more information, or to register for a training program, please contact Spiro Ballas, Saint Barnabas Hospice and Palliative Care Center Senior Volunteer Coordinator, at 973-322-4866 or sballas@sbhcs.com.

Training programs will be offered at the following locations.

Essex County

• Beginning Wednesday, January 21, from 6:30 – 9:00 p.m.

Saint Barnabas Hospice and Palliative Care Center, West Orange

Programs held on 1/21, 1/28, 2/4, 2/11, 2/18, and 2/25

• Beginning Monday, February 2, from 9:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Montclair – Location to be determined

Programs schedule to be held on 2/2, 2/9 and 2/23

(There will be no class on 2/16.)

• Beginning Monday, March 16, from 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, Newark

Programs scheduled to be held on 3/16, 3/23, and 3/30

• Beginning Monday, April 13, from 6:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Clara Maass Medical Center, Belleville

Programs scheduled to be held on 4/13, 4/20, 4/27, 5/4, 5/11, and 5/18

Monmouth County

• Beginning Friday, January 16, from 6:30 – 9:00 p.m.

Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch

Programs scheduled to be held on 1/16, 1/23, 1/30, 2/6, 2/13, and 2/27. (There will be no class 2/20.)

Established in 1981, Saint Barnabas Hospice and Palliative Care Center provides comprehensive physical, emotional and spiritual care and support services for patients with advanced illness and their families throughout ten counties in the State of New Jersey. The program, which serves infants, children, adults and the elderly, honors the unique choices and values of patients and their families while offering full access to the broad array of services provided by the Saint Barnabas Health Care System.

“In as few as three hours a week, volunteers can make a tremendous difference in the life of a patient coping with advanced illness,” explains Ballas.  “Volunteers can read to patients, hold their hand, or just spend time with them while their loved ones take a breather.  They are also a resource to families, typically helping by listening to their thoughts and concerns or assisting them with small tasks.  When you volunteer for hospice you get back as much as you give.”   

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