ArticleBMC palliative care2024
Adding spontaneity to organizations - what hospice volunteers contribute to everyday life in German inpatient hospice and palliative care units: a qualitative study.
Article in BMC palliative care, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 2 citations in OpenAlex.
- Meta-synthesis of qualitative research on comfort experiences of family caregivers in hospice care: a systematic review.Frontiers in public health · 2026Pooled it
- Service motivation and its associated factors among palliative care volunteers with self-reported personality traits: a cross-sectional study in China.BMC palliative care · 2026Article
- A qualitative descriptive case study on the incentive strategies of hospice care volunteers.BMC palliative care · 2026Article
- Relational care in palliative care units: a qualitative study of low-threshold volunteer hospice conversations.BMC health services research · 2026Article
- Perspectives on Physician-Assisted Suicide Among German Hospice Professionals: Findings from a Diagnostic Survey.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundVolunteers have always been integral to hospice and palliative care. However, their roles have been left relatively undefined and broad.
aimThis study aims to examine the role of hospice volunteers in German inpatient hospice and palliative care. The question we seek to answer is: What do hospice volunteers contribute to everyday life in inpatient hospice and palliative care units?
methodsWe undertook a multicenter, on-site qualitative interview study, utilizing problem-centered interviews with 16 volunteers from five inpatient hospice units and one hospital palliative care unit. Interviews were analyzed using grounded theory.
resultsAnalysis of the interviews revealed three typical characteristics of how hospice volunteers' describe their own role: (1) performing small acts of kindness, (2) creating a family-like atmosphere, (3) expecting emotional experiences. A common theme across all categories is the emphasis on spontaneous actions and personal experiences. The process of dying becomes an experience interpreted by volunteers as enriching, as a gift, as a "teacher".
conclusionGranting hospice volunteers freedom to act spontaneously and intuitively benefits hospice and palliative care delivery. Organizations should leave sufficient room for spontaneity in order to involve volunteers effectively. Open and unstandardized roles facilitate dynamic work practices.
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