Volunteer in hospice care

Provide comfort and support to patients and families receiving care from Hospice of the Central Coast, part of Montage Health. You’ll play a key role in a team offering personalized end-of-life care in your community.

Training and education

Before you start volunteering, you’ll complete a general orientation and a short hospice-specific orientation to:

• Understand hospice care, and our philosophy
• Meet our team
• Learn how to offer grief support
• Identify what’s important to patients
• Build listening and communication skills
• Determine when you’re ready to volunteer

Throughout your time as a volunteer, you’ll receive ongoing support and education from staff, volunteer mentors, and a variety of community experts.

Volunteer opportunities

After the general training session, choose to volunteer in the area that’s closest to your heart:

• Bereavement services – Give one-on-one support to patients and families, make bereavement phone calls and visits, and, with additional training, facilitate grief support groups
• Complementary therapy – Provide massage therapy to patients in their homes
  • Ask us about other services you may have credentials in
• Patient companion – Visit patients in their homes or nursing facilities to offer companionship, play music, or read with patients expected to live one year or less
• Vigil service – Sit by a patient's bedside or hold a vigil in the last 24-to-48 hours of life

Opportunities with specialized training

Tell us if you’re interested in one of these volunteer areas that require additional training:

• Administrative assistance – Support our staff in a variety of projects
• Bereavement group facilitation – Work in pairs to lead support groups with guidance from professional staff
• Vigil service – Sit by a patient’s bedside or hold a vigil in the last 24 to 48 hours of life

Apply to become a Hospice volunteer

Please note on your application form that you are interested in becoming a volunteer for Hospice of the Central Coast.

Apply here 

 If you have questions, call (831) 649-7750.