Requirements

Childrens Hospital Los Angeles enthusiastically welcomes individuals of all backgrounds and abilities to volunteer their services.

Applicants must be:

• at least 15 years old
• 18 years of age to work directly with patients
• in good physical and mental health
• able to communicate well in English (second language skills are a plus)

Volunteer Commitment

Comprehensive testing, training, and orientations are provided for each volunteer at our hospital.  As a result, we ask that each volunteer commit to completing 100 hours of service in no less than six months of consecutive service.

Please be patient with us:
Evening and weekend volunteer shifts are the most popular.  As a result, receiving an assignment during these highly requested times may take longer. 

Apply to Be a Volunteer

Upon receipt of your application, your name will then be placed on a list for the next available orientation and you will be notified by mail.

Before You May Volunteer

The Volunteer Services Department will work with you to schedule completion of:

• one 3-hour General Orientation, usually held on weeknights
• one 2-hour Patient Care Orientation given by the Child Life Department
• a personal interview with the Volunteer Coordinator
• health clearance through our Employee Health Services Department
• purchase of a Volunteer Uniform

Personal Interview

During the interview you will:

• Complete a competency test related to working with hospitalized patients
• Complete a competency test related to our Confidentiality Policy

Health Clearance Examination

The health clearance is necessary before you begin working with patients.  It includes:

• Written documentation of a minimum of two vaccinations for measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) received as a child in persons born after 1957, or one MMR given after the age of seventeen (17).
• Verbal knowledge of having had chicken pox
• TB skin test screening for tuberculosis (the hospital requires a 2-step TB test - which may mean up to 4 visits to the Employee Health Services Department, or, in skin test-positive persons, a written report of chest x-ray results taken within the previous year
• Drug and alcohol screening

Volunteer Uniform

You will need to purchase and wear a uniform, which will cost $15..