Meet one of Unity Health Toronto’s Caring Hearts, Leading Minds: Astrid Amador
Caring Hearts, Leading Minds: Astrid Amador, volunteer at St. Joseph’s Health Centre
Story and Photos by Kevin Van Paassen
For nearly three years Astrid Amador has been volunteering at St. Joseph’s Health Centre. Whether it’s helping patients get to and from their appointments, assisting them through the registration process or simply greeting them with a warm smile, Amador enjoys making their experience a little less stressful.
“The best part of being a volunteer is feeling like I have contributed to making a patient’s potentially stressful hospital visit more accessible and enjoyable,” said Amador, a full time graduate student at the University of Toronto.
“I like interacting with patients, making them feel welcome, and showing them that someone is there to support them throughout their visit.”
St. Joseph’s currently has a total of 108 volunteers of which 23 are post-secondary youth volunteers. In the summertime that number is bolstered by 30 additional post-secondary and high school student volunteers.
“It’s a win-win situation for both St. Joseph’s and our volunteers,” says Amanda Pickup, Youth Coordinator, Volunteer Services. “Young people bring their energy, enthusiasm and positivity and they get the gratification of giving back to their communities ¬– and for some of them it’s a glimpse into a possible health care career path.” According to Pickup, volunteering can often reinforce career goals for young people or introduce them to a breadth of possible career paths they hadn’t even considered.
The benefits of volunteering apply to much more than pursuing a career in health care.
“The communication skills that our youth acquire while volunteering, active listening, equitable approaches and showing compassion wherever possible, are invaluable in life in general,” continues Pickup.
Though she has fulfilled multiple volunteer roles at St. Joseph’s, Amador has spent the majority of her time working as a ‘courtesy volunteer’ at the Gilgan entrance providing information, escorting patients to and from their appointments and providing wheelchair assistance.
“What I remember most about my first shift was being overwhelmed by the number of hospital floors, areas, waiting rooms, and hallways that I needed to learn to navigate in order to direct patients,” said Amador.
“I remember imagining how much more stressful and overwhelming it must feel for a patient trying to get to their appointment.”
Amador’s volunteer work at St. Joseph’s, which currently has her helping in the Breast Centre, has also given her a greater understanding of the many challenges faced by patients.
For some simply finding accessible transportation to and from the hospital can be a struggle, for others navigating the hallways can be overwhelming and for still others language can be a significant barrier.
“I noticed how while some patients have family members to support them and attend appointments with them, others simply don’t have that,” said Amador who speaks French, Spanish and English. “I saw how language barriers or mobility challenges make it harder to navigate registration procedures, billing, appointment follow-ups, or the hospital itself, despite everyone’s best efforts to accommodate patients.”
Amador has plans to pursue medical school and is currently enrolled in a Master of Health Science in Medical Physiology program at U of T. The one-year program is meant to prepare students to work in healthcare-related industry fields such as pharma, biotech, and clinical research.
“I often encounter patients who mention that they have conditions that have been mentioned in my classes and while I can’t provide any medical knowledge or guidance as a volunteer, I get to learn more about a patient’s lived experience through what they choose to share with me during encounters,” said Amador. “I think this always serves to remind me that the conditions I learn about in school are experiences real people live with everyday and not just terms or groups of symptoms to study.”
Despite a full course load as well as her volunteer work, Amador finds time to tutor students in grades 7-12 in math and science. Having grown up as a dancer, she has also joined a recreational dance team at the University of Toronto.
For Amador, being able to lend a hand is what makes her volunteer work so rewarding.
“So many patients have told me their visit would have been so much more stressful if one of us hadn’t been there,” said Amador. “To me, that’s what makes volunteering worth it.”
“I think that compassionate social interactions are a key component of healthcare and I am very proud to contribute to the caring environment here at St. Joseph’s.”
St. Joseph’s Volunteer Services is currently recruiting year-round adult and summer youth. For more information please visit our Volunteer Services page.