Ilive project volunteer study: Delivery of a novel training programme for volunteer coordinators, to underpin development and implementation of hospital palliative care volunteer services

ABSTRACT

Background: iLIVE is an EU-H2020 funded study to assess end of life care in 13 countries. The iLIVE Volunteer Study (WP3) will evaluate the development, training and implementation of new Hospital Palliative Care Volunteer (HPCV) services for patients in the last month of life, in 5 countries. A European Core Curriculum (ECC) will guide HPCV service development, devised from the results of a recent WP3 Delphi study that identified 54 essential elements for service implementation and training. Aim: Describe a novel training programme developed for volunteer coordinators (VC's) in use of the ECC prior to developing their own HPCV services. Design, methods and approach: An educational psychologist with international experience in training volunteers developed the training programme, based in Experiential Learning Theory (ELT). The programme covered the two sections of the ECC 1. ECC-A 10-Step Model for development and implementation of HPCV services into a highly structured context (hospital) 2. ECC-B training curriculum for HPCV's, including example training sessions and materials Training included plenaries, small group work, guided reflections and participant presentations. Programme evaluation was gained through participant feedback. Results: 10 participants from 5 countries attended the 3 day training programme. Feedback received was positive and highlighted the following themes •The programme provided valuable opportunity for shared learning •Ongoing reflection via ELT facilitated understanding of the ECC •A focus on training methodology (including sample training materials) highlighted as valuable Conclusions: The programme provided a structured, theory-based approach, which facilitated understanding of the ECC, empowering VC's to develop their own HPCV services, and train volunteers to support patients at the end of life. Recent challenges with COVID-19 will impact design and delivery of these services. iLIVE WP3 will evaluate these HPCV services in 5 countries.