Volunteer Services
Thank you for your interest in volunteering with the UAB Health System.
Volunteers are special people who are part of our team of world-class healthcare providers. Whether you are an adult, college student, or teenager, volunteering at UAB can be a rewarding experience. As part of the UAB family, volunteers strive to adhere to the Core Values of the UAB Health System:
Always care – Listen with empathy, be compassionate, and support those in need.
Own it – Be accountable, take action, and make it happen.
Work together – Think win-win; build consensus; and play your role on the team.
Do right – Follow through, work with principles, and do no harm.
Sometimes in life, we all want to feel productive and needed. By volunteering, you will be a very important part of the success of the Hospital and you will also be making a huge difference in the life of another.
Volunteering involves much more than caring and helping patients. Volunteers are able to enhance their computer skills, experience all aspects of healthcare, build a resume, and make new lifelong friends. UAB Hospital accepts volunteers of many ages. Our teenage volunteers are ages 15-18 and volunteer during the summer. Our college volunteers are current college students that volunteer for one full semester, one day a week. Our adult volunteers range in ages and commit to six months of service.
Being a volunteer at UAB Hospital will expand your horizons and give you a sense of pride and accomplishment.
Thank you for your interest in volunteering. Please feel free to contact us with any questions at (205) 934-4270.
The Department of Volunteer Services is committed to providing UAB with reliable and compassionate volunteers throughout the hospital. Some of the areas where volunteers help are:
- Gift Shops
- Waiting Rooms
- Burn/Trauma units
- Neuro ICU
- Day-of-Surgery
- In-Patient Units
- Way-Finders
- Clowning
- Healing Words
- UAB O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center
- SPOONS – Assistance to older adult patients with meal time feeding or companionship while eating.
- HELP – The Hospital Elder Life Program (HELP) is a national clinical program that uses trained volunteers to help prevent cognitive and functional decline in older hospitalized adults. Patients who are eligible for the program are assessed by the HELP nurse to determine which activities they will need during their hospital stay. HELP volunteers will then visit these patients to assist with range-of-motion/ambulation activities, mealtime encouragement and feeding assistance, and cognitive stimulation (talking with them, assisting with activities, playing music/games, etc.)
- Animal-Assisted Activities
- Palliative Care
- Professional Photography
Admit it. When someone says UAB HOSPITAL VOLUNTEER, you think “pink lady in the Gift Shop.” But did you know that volunteers at UAB:
- work in Trauma and Day-of-Surgery Waiting Rooms,
- help visitors find their way,
- act as Patient Representatives,
- do sewing and other craft projects from home,
- assist staff and patients on in-patient units,
- write newsletters,
- feed patients,
- minister to stressed-out families,
- create and send press releases,
- make jewelry for critically ill children,
- read to lonely patients,
- and much, much more
Some of the benefits offered to volunteers at UAB are:
- Free hospital parking
- Meal coupons
- Gift shop discounts
- Annual awards and recognition banquet
Please call our office at 205.934.4270 if you’re interested in learning more about volunteer opportunities in the UAB Health System. And by the way, if you want to volunteer in the Gift Shop, we’ll happily fit you for a pink smock.
College is an exciting time in a student’s life, filled with new experiences. For students interested in making the most of their college experience or learning more about careers in healthcare, volunteering at UAB Health system is a great idea. Students interested in pursuing advanced degrees in the health sciences, such as nursing, medicine, PT, OT, and ST, often seek volunteer experience to augment their applications to those programs.
Anyone interested in the College Volunteering Program should complete an application form and return it to Volunteer Services. Please understand that our program is only held during the Fall and Spring semesters. Students must be available to commit to one 4 hour shift each week for a full semester of volunteer service due to the time, effort, and cost of training and assigning a new volunteer. After you have successfully completed the minimum requirement of one full semester, we will be happy to write a letter of recommendation.
Thank you for your interest in volunteering. Feel free to contact us with any questions you may have at 205.934.4270 or email us.
Do you have an interest in working in a hospital setting or learning more about careers in healthcare? Are you a mature and responsible high school student? Do you want to meet other teens from the Birmingham Metro area while helping patients and staff? If so, the Teen Volunteer Program (TVP) at UAB Hospital might just be the right thing for you.
The TVP Program takes place each summer and is comprised of two sessions – one runs through the month of June and the other through the month of July (specific dates vary each year). To be eligible, teens must:
- be at least age 15 by June 1st
- be actively enrolled in high school
- submit a complete application package, which includes a teacher reference form
- attend an in-person interview at UAB
- purchase a TVP uniform (usually around $20)
- commit to attending the entire volunteer session for which he/she applies
Please call the Volunteer Services office at 205-934-4270 for more information.
2025 Teen Volunteer Program registration will be live February 2025.
In 1949, a group of caring women saw a need for Volunteer Services within UAB Hospital. They organized the Board of Lady Managers, which subsequently became the UAB Hospital Auxiliary. These civic-minded women set the pattern and ideals that continue today. The UAB Hospital Auxiliary is recognized as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.
In the early years, Auxiliary support to the UAB community included:
- purchasing medications for indigent patients,
- purchasing life-saving equipment for the hospital,
- awarding nursing student scholarships,
- decorating living quarters for nurses, and
- providing new TV sets and orthopedic equipment for polio patients
More recently, the Auxiliary has provided affordable infant car seats, craft supplies for the Pediatric playroom, educational videos for new parents, and support to the Spiritual Health Department. Some of the Auxiliary’s most recent, and largest, donations to the hospital were:
- $500,000 towards completion of the North Pavilion
- A children’s play area for the Trauma/Burn Waiting Room
- Artwork for the walls in the Women and Infants Center
Today, the Auxiliary is comprised of dedicated men and women who give a substantial amount of their time and talent at UAB. For more information about the Auxiliary, please call Volunteer Services at 205.934.4270.
To learn more about joining our team, call Volunteer Services at 205.934.4270 or e-mail us at volunteerservices@uabmc.edu.