The New Volunteer Workforce...But They Won't Stay

Here's an article from the Stanford Social Innovation Review entitled "The New Volunteer Workforce":

http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/1155/

In this article, the authors talk about the poor management of volunteers by nonprofits. In fact, more than one-third of volunteers in one year will not return the following year. Some great nuggets in this article.

We have to rethink completely our volunteer management model - a change to a 'volunteer engagement' model. Our volunteers expect more, demand more, and should be given more. A wealth of talent and expertise, at an incredibly cost-effective level, totally wasted due to inefficient and dated techniques.

ED - the Engagement Director

I've been reading a lot about volunteer engagement, and Boomers, and the untapped (no pun intended) pool of talent of the Boomers reaching retirement age but not ready to hit the links or just fade out. A key component of tackling the needs of the uninsured is to reach these retired health care professionals.

Unfortunately, free clinics don't do themselves a favor with their volunteer recruitment efforts. They may have some systems or processes in place, but more than likely it's a grab-em-and-put-them-to-work mentality. Most clinics call their efforts volunteer recruitment, but I think that' all wrong, that it's pointing in the wrong direction...

"Volunteer recruitment" is a focus on the clinic - what volunteers do we need, how do we get them, how do we keep them. This is backwards; the focus needs to be on the volunteer.

I would argue that the correct perspective is not on volunteer recruitment but on volunteer ENGAGEMENT. What does that mean? Where I'm getting at is looking at it from the volunteer's angle - why does a retired doc or nurse what to volunteer? What's in it for them - a sense of purpose, a giving back to the community, a desire to practice medicine "the way it used to be" - what is it? What drives them?

Then, design everything you do around meeting the needs of the volunteer, not around the clinic. Let the Executive Director become the Engagement Director, the Volunteer Coordinator become the Volunteer Engager, the CEO become the Chief Engagement Officer. I contend that in the long run you will be much more successful.

Thoughts?

TAP-IN In Cleveland

Here's an article about TAP-IN's launch in Cleveland...

http://www.cleveland.com/sunsentinel/communitylife/index.ssf?/base/features-0/12283997384790.xml&coll=4

Where's the talk about the "seasoned" health care professionals?

In a recent blog, that I have listed in My Blog List, Dr. Frederic Jones blogs about the fact that there just is not a lot out there looking at utilizing the strong talents of the volunteer health care professionals that are out there in the free clinics engaging, not just talking...

It's a great blog, and a great point - what's out there on this topic? At TAP-IN, we are proud to be focused on that exact topic. An interesting question, though - what else is out there? Any other programs?

What are folks seeing out there?

Engaging Volunteers

At the SC Free Clinic Association conference last month, I gave a presentation on Volunteer Engagement. Within that talk, we discussed some key factors in a successful volunteer recruitment and engagement program:

•Simplify the Experience - It needs to be an easy process to volunteer at the clinic. This does not mean that you bypass key steps like credentialing, etc., but it does mean that you streamline the process as much as you can. Review the 'flow' of the clinic process - is it simple and easy for a new volunteer to pick up? How much paperwork is there? What barriers are thrown up in the process that discourage a volunteer? Look for ways to make the volunteer experience simple, painful and enjoyable.

•Emphasize the Focus - What seasoned health care professionals want to do in volunteering is see patients. Period. That is their focus - to go back to the practice of medicine the way they thought it would be when they started. That's the beauty of the free clinic experience - that's exactly what it is, free of insurance forms and practice management/business concerns (for the doctor, at least). So, be sure to emphasize the focus on patient care in your recruiting, and in the clinic process.

•Stress the Flexibility - Retired health care professionals want some flexibility in their volunteer experience - some may want an evening clinic, maybe weekly, maybe monthly, maybe randomly. Others may want daytime hours. While you do need some standardization and consistency in you clinic, be willing to be flexible. I'd rather have a doctor that will volunteer one night clinic every 6 weeks than turn her away because 'we only do monthly rotations.' Be willing to change and adapt.

•Demonstrate Respect - Volunteer physicians and other health care providers in many ways want to be treated like staff, in terms of knowing what's going on. So, be sure to include them in notices or key information. You may even want to invite them from time to time to a staff meeting, or hold an 'staff' meeting for volunteers. Keep them in the loop.

•Express Appreciation - Look for ways to thank them. My favorite is when a patient writes a thank you note - give the volunteer a copy of it, with an additional 'thanks to you...' note from you. A personal touch is best - you dont have to spend money on gifts.

•Follow Through, Follow up - One a volunteer is active with you, don't forget about them. Check in with them periodically to see how they are doing, to solicit advice and to encourage. Also, remember that your best source of future volunteers are your current volunteers...they are also typically a group that become or are donors as well.

Physician Burnout - An Opportunity?

On our TAP-IN weblog, we recently posted an article about physicians plans to retire early and/or cut back on their practice hours.

The article sites a survey by the Physician Foundation in which over half of physicians surveyed plan on cutting back or retiring. 90 percent said they spent more time on non-clinical paperwork, and 2/3 say this has taken them away from patient care.

This, I believe, presents an opportunity for free clinics in recruting volunteer physicians. Again and again, when we interview seasoned health care professionals on why they volunteer, we consistently hear that a free clinic environment allows them to practice medicine "the way they thought it would be" when they left medical school - taking care of patients, without all the paperwork and practice management headaches.

This needs to be a point of emphasis in your physician recruiting - for physicians to 'come back' to practicing the way they envisioned it, serving a group of patients that need you, and are grateful for you...

Look at your marketing materials on volunteer recruitment, and your process - make sure this feature is a prominent point of emphasis.

(here's the link: http://tap-in.typepad.com/tapin_weblog/2008/11/primary-care-doctors-planning-to-quit-or-cut-back.html )