Tzu Chi Hospital Volunteer Service Team

In 1986, Tzu Chi General Hospital established the Volunteer Service Team. Tzu Chi commis-sioners from every part of the island commit themselves to volunteer service. They shuttle back and forth throughout the hospital, acting as bridges between medical personnel and patients. The volunteer service is a special feature of the Tzu Chi hospital. A dharma master from Holland once described the vests that they wear as "mini-cassocks." Volunteers think of themselves as "mobile information desks." Master Cheng Yen praised them as "the software of the Tzu Chi hospital."

Before commissioners can become hospital volunteers, they must first undergo a period of training. The volunteer service can be divided into four sections: educational service, clinical service, patient service, and support service.

The concrete services that the volunteers provide are:

1. working in conjunction with medical personnel to care for patients;
2. giving patients spiritual support or financial help; and
3. giving patients information about hospital procedures.