A Growing Global Need for Volunteers -- The Hospice Volunteer Association (HVA), a nonprofit entity, was founded in 2004 and its presence continues to grow in the U.S. and other parts of the world because the need for volunteers is growing more critical. There are many factors that are driving this need.

This was another year of innovation and change for us at the HEAL Project. This year we continued to focus on developing programs associated with the Hospice Volunteer Association (HVA). The Patient Data Vault, a HIPAA-compliant solution to the need for communicating, storing and retrieving patient data for the purpose of managing hospice volunteer programs has been successfully serving our member hospices since 2008. This low cost program has dramatically changed the way volunteer coordinators manage their volunteer programs.

In 2008 HVA also established the Hospice Community Forum (HCF), which has continued to be a venue for providing useful resources as well as allowing the entire hospice community to network on critical issues relating to the important work that the they do for the public-at-large as well as stimulating professional growth through better communication. This venue is also open to the general public, where they can get useful feedback from our hospice community members as they venture into helping a loved one through the dying process.

There have been many significant achievements at HVA:

• HVA clarified its Mission Statement and Vision for moving forward into the next decade.
• HVA membership has more than doubled, now covering 94% of the continental U.S.
• HVA has a growing international presence with members in Britain, Canada, China and Ireland.
• HVA receives numerous requests from individuals wishing to volunteer. HVA member hospices receive priority with HVA's Volunteer Referral Service.
• HVA is working on preparing to launch its international website.
• HVA continues to add new features to its Patient Data Vault service, which utilizes technology that is revolutionizing volunteer management. Volunteer managers that are using the service are very pleased with it.
• Some members have expressed an interest in establishing regional chapters in the U.S. (Northeast, Southeast, Northwest, Southwest).
• Expanding the National Hospice Document Repository (NHDR) resource, which provides the general population and the hospice community with the largest FREE database of documents and articles relating to hospice and end-of-life care.

As we move forward, HVA has the following goals and objectives:

• Continue to encourage continued international growth of HVA, which will result in HVA changing its name to the International Hospice Volunteer Association (IHVA) in the near future.
• Establish the Hospice Volunteers Without Borders program which will encourage volunteers to serve in other countries.
• Encourage development of regional chapters in the U.S.
• Continue to expand the features of HVA's Patient Data Vault Service.
• Watch for a new education program from the Hospice Volunteer Training Institute (HVTI)
• HVA will be working with HVTI to establish national certification and training standards for hospice volunteers and their managers

There is a growing need for volunteers in all parts of the world. While Britain, Canada and the U.S. have been the leaders in the world when it comes to hospice volunteerism, interest in this area of volunteerism is growing in other countries because more caregivers are needed to aid a growing elderly population.

HVA's mission and vision embraces a worldwide goal of improving hospice and palliative care. The economic challenges facing the world are going to require more altruistic actions from individuals everywhere. HVA wants to be a catalyst in making this happen. We can only do this through your continued support and personal vision for a better world through compassionate service.

Help us spread the word by telling others about HVA and its mission, especially other volunteers and volunteer coordinators.

Finally, your feedback and suggestions on how we can best serve the hospice community is very important to us. We believe all of our programs should evolve based upon the needs of hospice organizations and the volunteer community that supports them. If you have comments or suggestions, please send them directly to me via e-mail. We wish you all a prosperous year!!

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