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Volunteer facilitators assist community practices with enhancing cancer control
C B Woodruff1, A J Dietrich, P A Carney
1Department of Community and Family Medicine, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, NH, USA.
Objective:
To explore the feasibility of recruiting, training, and placing in the field volunteers to assist community practices in enhancing the provision of preventive care.
Design:
A case series design followed up a cohort of volunteers prospectively as they were recruited, trained, and assigned to practices.
Setting:
The New Hampshire Division of the American Cancer Society recruited and trained the volunteer facilitators.
Intervention:
Assistance from the volunteers in implementing a preventive services office system served as the intervention for practices. Volunteers were trained and supported by professional staff and an implementation manual.
Main Outcome Measures:
Recruitment, training, and volunteer experiences in working with practices, as well as the costs of supporting the program, were assessed.
Results:
Twenty-six volunteers were trained. Of the 15 assigned to practices, 11 had begun to assist their assigned practices to establish a preventive services office system. Extensive planning, patience, and support were required.
Conclusion:
Volunteers recruited and supported by an intermediary organization can provide assistance to practices in implementing a preventive services office system.