Introduction: Volunteers play an important role in supporting patients in hospitals, especially older adult patients who may have increased care needs. This systematic scoping review aimed to synthesise evidence related to qualitative evaluations of hospital-based therapeutically oriented volunteer programs for older patients from the perspective of clinicians (nurses, doctors, and allied health professionals), and stakeholders (patients, families, and volunteers).
Methods: Nine databases were searched from January 2002 to November 2022. Of the 549 articles identified, 15 were included in the final review.
Results: The evidence demonstrated that clinicians, patients, families, and volunteers could all see the benefits of volunteer programs for hospitalised older adults.
Conclusion: The benefits of volunteer support for older adults in hospital to patients, nurses, family members and volunteers outweighs the challenges. As volunteers provide support to older adult patients alongside nurses the incorporation of volunteers into care teams needs to be considered.
Keywords: Hospitals; Older patient; Scoping review; Volunteers.
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