Volunteer

Volunteers support medical personnel and other staff to help make our patients' stay more comfortable. This may include helping staff with patients, transporting and escorting patients in wheelchairs, and running errands to the pharmacy, labs and other areas.

Other roles include administrative support, greeting patients and families, providing emotional or spiritual support to patients and families, cuddling newborns and more.

Learn About Volunteer Doula Opportunities

We are not able to accept court-ordered service applications.

Applications are screened individually and require two professional/educational reference responses that are not from friends or family members. Volunteers are not selected on a first-come, first-served basis.

Specifically, we would like to know your availability, your motivation for volunteering, the qualities you have that you think will enhance our program, and the areas of UC San Diego Health that interest you.

Yes, there are several medical requirements.

• You will be required to provide proof of immunity to measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (chicken pox). This can be done by submitting proof of two immunizations for each of these diseases or a blood titer report from a lab that shows immunity.
• Clearance for tuberculosis (TB) is also required, but if you are accepted into the program, UC San Diego Health will provide that screening.
• You must submit proof of getting the COVID-19 vaccine (full series) and booster shot. You're considered fully vaccinated two weeks after completing a two-dose Moderna or Pfizer series or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine. If you're not yet eligible for the booster due to the timing of the original vaccine (s), you must get a booster shot within 30 days of eligibility for our volunteer program.

Volunteers may be placed at our hospitals in La Jolla or Hillcrest, or at one of clinics in San Diego County.

Shadowing is not part of our volunteer program.

Learn more about observation opportunities and other Education and Training programs.

Certain visa classifications may not be eligible for participation in the volunteer program because of government restrictions. Contact Volunteer Services at volsvcs@health.ucsd.edu for more information.

There is no link between Human Resources and Volunteer Services, so if you are interested in jobs at UC San Diego Health, check the employment website.