Available Teen Opportunities

Direct Patient Contact | Limited Patient Contact | No Patient Contact

Direct Patient Contact Positions

Beauty/Barber Shop
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Good customer service skills
2. Self-motivation 
3. Willingness to assist with any kind of activity, from sweeping floors to assisting with a wig to answering the phones
4. Ability to communicate effectively with patients
5. Outgoing personality and smile
6. Ability to assist patient with wig, scarf or turban

The Beauty/Barber Shop offers cancer patients services such as a shampoo, haircut, shaving services for face or head, head coverings and wigs, all free of charge. Services are on a first come, first served basis. The volunteer will greet the patients, assist the two staff members with clerical tasks and assist with showing scarves and wigs to patients. The volunteer will also have opportunities to visit with patients and family members in the clinic centers and at the Rotary House while demonstrating how to wear the "Urban Turban" head covering. 

Clinic Aide - Diagnostic Imaging - Areas A & D
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity, dependability and outgoing personality
2. Ability to "take the initiative"
3. Leadership qualities
4. Excellent communication skills

Clinic Aide - Diagnostic Center
Daytime program - Lobby, Visitor Escort, Data Entry

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity, dependability and outgoing personality
2. Ability to "take the initiative"
3. Leadership qualities
4. Ability to perform in a busy environment
5. Willingness to escort patients to other areas of the hospital requiring extensive walking

Clinic Aide - Gastrointestinal Center
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity, dependability and outgoing personality
2. Ability to "take the initiative"
3. Leadership qualities

Responsibilities include retrieving charts and files, picking up supplies from Sterile Processing and Central Supply, directing and escorting patients to other areas of the hospital and preparing patients for the "vital sign" room.

Clinic Aide - Head & Neck
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity, dependability and outgoing personality
2. Ability to "take the initiative"
3. Leadership qualities

Responsibilities include greeting patients and family members, retrieving films, records and supplies from other hospital areas, preparing exam rooms and escorting patients to other areas of the hospital.

Clinic Aide - Leukemia

Characteristics for successful placement:

    1.  Maturity, dependability and outgoing personality
    2.  Ability to "take the initiative"
    3.  Leadership qualities

Clinic Aide - Lymphoma

Characteristics for successful placement:

    1.  Maturity, Dependability and outgoing personality
    2.  Ability to "take the initiative"
    3.  Leadership qualities

Clinic Aide - Sarcoma
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity, dependability and outgoing personality
2. Ability to "take the initiative"
3. Leadership qualities

Responsibilities include delivery and retrieval of materials to and from other hospital areas, escorting patients to other areas of the hospital and clerical assistance as needed.

Clinic Aide - Thoracic
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity, dependability and outgoing personality
2. Ability to "take the initiative"
3. Leadership qualities

Responsibilities include monitoring wait times of patients (if a patient has waited longer than 30 minutes, the volunteer will notify staff), replenishing, changing and straightening magazines in the clinic and performing other tasks as needed.

Coffee/Craft Cart
Daytime, evening and weekend program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Good customer service skills
2. Outgoing personality
3. Ability to work well with a team
4. Ability to walk extensively and push a cart

Volunteers in this program have a good opportunity to visit with patients and families, making their waiting time in the clinic areas easier. Responsibilities include making coffee, stocking the cart with crafts and traveling through the clinic areas offering free beverages, activities and friendly visitation.

Class Assistant - Patient Education
Mondays only: 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. (must stay until 1 p.m. - lunch provided)

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Computer literacy and competency in Microsoft Excel
2. Solid customer skills
3. Good communication skills

"What You Can Do About Treatment Side Effect for Patients and Family Members" is a class conducted by a registered nurse and clinical dietician. The teen volunteer will assist with packets, sign-in sheets, classroom setup and classroom cleanup.

Patient Family Center
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity and dependability
2. Comfort with initiating conversation with patients
3. Computer skills

The Patient Family Center (PFC) is a room where volunteers serve as hosts and hostesses, providing personal and friendly attention to visitors and offering comfort and diversionary activities.  The volunteer may provide directions, both within the institution and in the Houston area, assist patients and family members with travel arrangements, transportation, banking needs, housing information, restaurant locations and places of interest.  The volunteer will escort patients and visitors to other areas of the institution.  The volunteer in this job must have good communication skills and be self-motivated.

Floor Host Floater
Daytime and weekend program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity and ability to work independently without a partner
2. Comfort with initiating conversation
3. Positive, strong customer service skills
4. Good listening skills
5. Ability to do extensive walking

This teen volunteer will visit with patients and family members, deliver newspapers (if requested) and offer TV Guides and magazines.

Library Aide - Patient/Family Library
Daytime and weekend program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity and ability to work independently, without a partner
2. Comfort with initiating conversation
3. Positive customer service skills
4. Self-motivation

Volunteer Services provides books, books on tape, magazines, newspapers, cassettes, puzzles and games for use by patients and their families. This special library also includes a Health Information Center that has books available on cancer and other health topics. Volunteers may help the full-time librarians in the library or circulate a book cart through the hospital and clinic areas offering patients a wide variety of reading materials. Responsibilities also include stocking and re-stocking bookshelves and carousels in patient waiting areas. 

Limited Patient Contact Positions

Gift Shops
Daytime, evening and weekend program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Good customer service skills
2. Dependability
3. Ability to learn to use cash register (occasionally)
4. Ability to assume flexible job responsibilities (e.g., stocking supplies, organizing shelves and assisting with inventory)

Volunteers will train in the gift shops to learn shop functions. Responsibilities will be varied and include handling merchandise, assisting customers, stocking cold drinks in coolers, candy, toiletries, over-the-counter drugs and various sundries. When necessary, there will be occasions to operate the cash register. Proceeds from gift shop sales support volunteer and patient programs.

Pricing Support - Gift Shops
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity and dependability
2. Strong customer service skills
3. Good organizational skills
4. Ability to follow directions
5. Strong attention to detail

Responsibilities in this position include organizing merchandise, confirming correct pricing and ticketing items in the various gift shops.

Jolly Trolley
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

    1.  Punctuality
    2.  Good customer service skills
    3.  Ability to handle cash transactions, count money, add totals
    4.  Ability to work well with an adult partner
    5.  Ability to walk extensively while pushing a cart

Patients and their families in the waiting areas of the clinics often do not want to leave the area for fear of missing an appointment. The Jolly Trolley provides a pleasant break for them by providing refreshment. Volunteers circulate a mobilized cart through the various clinic areas selling fruit juices, soft drinks, sandwiches and snacks.

Cyber Center
Daytime, evening and weekend program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity 
2. Ability to work with or without a partner
3. Good customer service skills
4. Some computer skills required
5. Comfort with entering patient rooms to retrieve TVs & DVD's

Volunteer will assist patients or families with computers, fax machine, copier, checking out DVD's and retrieving TVs from patient rooms.

Popcorn in the Park
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Ability to work with a team - a must
2. Positive customer services skills
3. Ability to count money and make change

Volunteers work with a team of teens on this cart. They will prepare popcorn and then visit patients, families and staff to sell it. This volunteer is also responsible for inventory and clean up of the cart. Experienced and new volunteers are required.

No Patient Contact Positions

Gift Shop - Stockroom
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Ability to follow directions
2. Self-motivation
3. Ability to move boxes, unpack and put items away on shelves

Responsibilities include assisting the store clerk with receiving, pricing and distributing merchandise to four gift shops, as well as maintaining the stockroom area in a neat, orderly fashion.

Place...of wellness
Monday morning or afternoon (9 a.m. - 1 p.m/1 p.m. - 5 p.m.)

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Maturity
2. Ability to dress in business dress
3. Clerical skills
4. Availability for a full day
5. Ability to work independently of others

Responsibilities include filing, typing, answering telephones and running errands.

Order of the Eastern Star (OES) Handicraft Program
Daytime program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Skill in arts and crafts
2. Ability to cut and count items
3. Ability to work well with a partner
4. Ability to work well with older adults

This volunteer will assist the OES Handicraft volunteers with the production of craft kits. Last year, over 47,000 kits were produced and given out free of charge to our patients and their family members.

Staff Support - Volunteer Services
Daytime, evening and weekend program - clerical position

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Experience - only
2. High level of maturity
3. Demonstration of management skills and dependability

This teen will be selected based on years of experience as a volunteer. These chosen volunteers assist staff with various duties related to the teen program. This volunteer will cross-train in Gift Shop, Patient Family Center, Discharge Host, Gifts of Wheels and the popcorn cart programs.

Literature Racks
Weekend program

Characteristics for successful placement:

1. Ability to work successfully without supervision
2. Ability to work well with a partner
3. Knowledge of the hospital - helpful
4. Able to life
5. Able to do extensive walking and pushing of cart

Volunteer will circulate a cart with patient information and newsletters to the clinic waiting areas, offering patients a wide variety of educational materials.