HelpCare Clinic relies on medical and non-medical volunteers to treat patients each day. Many volunteers have an individual interest and sign up on their own to be involved. Another great way to volunteer is to establish a volunteer team from your church. This allows you to serve as a church community, form relationships, and establish a long-term partnership with HelpCare.

We are so thankful for your interest in volunteering as a church team! Read on to learn what team volunteering looks like – or learn more about individual volunteering HERE.

Volunteering as a team works best within the structure of our Thursday evening clinic sessions. We see patients each Thursday evening from 5:30 p.m. until about 7:30 p.m. We ask volunteers to show up at about 5 p.m., and expect to stay until 8:00 p.m. Typically, we do have a light dinner for volunteers while they are here on Thursday evenings.

We would love for our volunteer teams to come once every month, if possible. This helps us to ensure continuity of training and knowledge of our practices.

Some volunteer teams secure more volunteers than they will need for a given Thursday evening. This allows individual volunteers to serve less frequently and ensures more people can be involved.

.There are many different volunteer roles available. As you set up your volunteer team, try to fill each of these roles. If you can’t find all of these roles in your church community, that’s okay! We can supplement your team with the individual volunteers we work with each week.

Team Leader: A volunteer with excellent organizational skills to assist with scheduling the team’s volunteers and communicating with HelpCare staff.

1 team leader recommended

Medical Provider: A doctor, nurse practitioner, or physician’s assistant with a valid license to practice medicine here in Nebraska (MD/DO, APRN/PA, etc.)

1 or 2 medical providers recommended

Behavioral Health Specialist: A mental or behavioral health practitioner with a valid license to practice here in Nebraska, and a willingness to serve as a resource and triage patients who present with mental or behavioral health needs.

1 behavioral health specialist recommended

Nurse: A nurse or nursing assistant with a valid license here in Nebraska (RN, LPN, LVN, CNA, etc.).

2 nurses per medical provider recommended

Scribe: A volunteer with some knowledge of medical terminology and computer systems to assist with charting in our electronic health record.

1 scribe per medical provider recommended

Lab Technician: A lab technician or phlebotomist with valid training.

1 lab technician recommended

Interpreter: A volunteer who is bilingual in English and Spanish with some knowledge of medical terminology.

1-3 interpreters recommended

Receptionist: A volunteer with customer service abilities and a willingness to learn the process of checking patients in and out, and scheduling patients in our electronic health record (it’s a simple process, we promise!).

1 receptionist recommended

Hospitality: A volunteer with a kitchen and the means to prepare food for the volunteer team each evening they serve at HelpCare. This volunteer does not have to stay for the entire time, but can drop food off for 10-15 volunteers to enjoy.

1 hospitality volunteer recommended

Prayer Partner: A volunteer willing to pray with and pray over the group before clinic begins each evening the team serves at HelpCare. This volunteer does not have to stay for the entire time, but can pray with the team at the beginning of the session.

1 prayer partner recommended

Again, if you cannot fill all of these roles from within your church community, that’s okay! We have plenty of individual volunteers who would love to supplement your team’s skills and experience. With willing and compassionate hearts, bring your team to HelpCare and we can work with the talents, skills and experience your team has.

Out of respect for our patients and their privacy, we do have a volunteer application process. Each volunteer on your team will need to:

1. Complete our volunteer application based on the position for which they intend to volunteer.
2. Undergo a background check. We take care of this process, but we will need the correct forms signed within the volunteer application.
3. Take part in HelpCare Clinic orientation. We can do this for your entire group at once.
4. Shadow a volunteer currently serving in the position for which they intend to volunteer.

We can work with your team as a group or as individuals to help get these elements in order. If you add team members along the way, we can plug them into the process accordingly.

The first steps to getting started as a volunteer team are pretty simple!

First, it can be helpful to have an idea of someone who might be willing to serve as a team leader for your group. If you don’t immediately have someone in mind, that’s okay! It can make it easier, however, if potential team members know exactly who to contact.

Second, reach out to us at HelpCare Clinic. Lisa Guthrie (director@helpcareclinic.com) manages our volunteer application, training and orientation. She would love to speak with your group, your team leader, or your entire church community about this opportunity.

Finally, after we figure out who wants to be involved and what the schedule for your team might look like, we’ll help make sure you have all the application materials your team needs to get started.

We are so appreciative of your consideration! Volunteer teams are a great way to bring the mission of HelpCare and the mission of your church together for lives changed in our community.