If anyone doubts the power a volunteer can make in the lives of others, they need only witness Doug Jones in action.
The volunteer has been singing and playing his guitar for patients at Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care in Penetanguishene on and off since 2018. Recently, he's been playing for in-patients in the Horizon Program for Geriatric Psychiatry. It's a program for seniors with psychiatric diagnoses and younger people with dementia.
"Many of them cannot communicate," says Magdalena Stapinski, clinical manager of the Horizon Program. "However some of them can actually sing full songs. They get up and dance with our staff."
The music calms their behaviours and gives them something to focus on for a time, she adds. And, “The staff enjoy singing and dancing with the patients. It’s makes their work life better.”
Jones said his music is simple, calming and interactive. He says music brings people out of their shells.
“One lady in a wheelchair, who can’t communicate, started tapping her hand and then rocking to the music,” he says. “One guy who was dishevelled and who couldn’t talk, started dancing when I was playing an Elvis tune. He came over to the lady in the wheelchair and took her hand and started dancing with her. It was a touching moment,” Jones says.
Jones, a retired dentist from Waterloo, who has a home in Tiny Township, often plays in the Atrium entrance, providing live music for patients and staff. He plays during summer bonfires and he's performed at two Christmas parties.
Jones coordinates his volunteer time with Diane Desroches, talent and volunteer services coordinator at Waypoint.
"We are happy to have Doug. It takes a special person to volunteer, and at a mental health hospital it's a big give," she says. "Our volunteers give people hope to keep going."
Doug says he is driven to giving people a time of levity and joy while living in the structured environment of the hospital. He gets a lot out of volunteering too, When he can see his music making people happy, it makes him happy too.
“When you make a one-on-one connection with people, you make them feel better about themselves. You are paying attention to them and when you play a song they know, it reaches a deeper part of that person and triggers deeper memories,” he said.
Desroches said Waypoint is still in the process of rebuilding its volunteer base. Before the COVID pandemic, the 315-bed hospital had 130 volunteers. Due to the delicate nature of patients in the hospital, volunteers were only welcomed back last June.
More volunteers are needed for music, art and recreation therapy, pet visits, the gift shop and research.
"Volunteers are important to building a better future for the hospital and staff," she adds.
When someone calls Desroches offering to volunteer, she organizes a meeting. Volunteers then have to complete an online document and a vulnerable sector check with the police before they can start. Therapy animals must be certified through an agency such as St. John Ambulance. Volunteers are then assigned a staff mentor to coordinate with.
"They are not just on their own. They are supported," says Desroches.
University students volunteer to gain experience as well as career path clarity, says Desroches. For example, one social work student volunteered with recreation and found she loved the work.
"She came to me and said 'Here I thought I wanted to be a social worker, but now I want to go into recreational therapy.'"
The hospital has approximately 3,500 volunteer hours per year, but the impact goes well beyond that, says Desroches. When Jones plays for one hour, he could play for 20 people and they all get the benefit, she says.
For more information about volunteering at Waypoint, contact Diane Desroches at [email protected] or call the hospital at 705-549-3181.
