During the pandemic, the biggest work load fell on the medical staff of hospitals. Unfortunately, the number of patients with coronavirus is currently growing. In this regard, the help of volunteers is highly important.
At present, 25 volunteers provide daily assistance in eight city hospitals.
Volunteers are the first to receive the patients, they help measure patients’ temperature; they guide patients through the hospital; they do paper work, and accept phone calls.
Vologda State University students are among those who work on the “front line”.
Maxim Bersenev, a first–year student at the University College of VSU, helped doctors at the city hospital No. 5 in Molochnoye.
– Maxim, what were your duties?
– I answered phone calls and helped at the reception desk with documents.
– Can you describe your usual daily routine as a volunteer?
– I had to get up at five in the morning to arrive at the hospital on time. My day was like “Groundhog Day”: in most cases, I answered the same type of questions on the phone, the answers to which I had already learned, so I was able to do it without any help from hospital personnel.
– What safety measures did you follow to avoid getting infected? Did you have to wear a protective suit?
– I was given scrubs, and, of course, I put on a protective mask and never took it off!
I didn’t have to wear a protective suit because I didn’t come into close contact with people who were sick with coronavirus.
– What are the biggest difficulties you have faced?
– Firstly, I had to get used to the new unfamiliar environment, and secondly, it was pretty difficult right off the bat, because I didn’t know answers to the questions I was asked.
– Volunteering at the hospital is hard. What would you do relax after a hard day?
- Sometimes, on my way home I was so exhausted that I fell asleep on the bus. After I came home, I would just hit the sack.