"In fact, volunteering may be just a passion at the beginning, but after gradually turning this enthusiasm into a direction in the heart, and everyone gradually builds the project more and more accurately, more and more focused, and more and more normalized, it is the real 'gathering is a fire, scattering is a sky full of stars'. Liu Mengmeng, former deputy secretary of the Youth League Committee of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University and initiator of the Youth Volunteer Service Team, said.
In October 2023, the Youth League Committee of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University was shortlisted for the finals of the 6th Gansu Youth Volunteer Service Project Competition, and finally won the silver medal of the competition. Liu Mengmeng believes that professionalism and precision are the advantages and characteristics of the Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University, and they are also the original intention that the team has always adhered to over the years.
usI want to sink high-quality medical resources".
As one of the initiators of the youth volunteer service team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University, Liu Mengmeng has been involved in the volunteer service work of the hospital since 2013. But about the official establishment of the team, we have to start with a story in 2018.
Once, when she was on duty at night, Liu Mengmeng accidentally found a couple curled up in the corner of the outpatient clinic. After inquiry, it was learned that the couple was from Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, and when they arrived at the hospital, they had already arrived at the outpatient clinic. "I felt very sad at the time, so I helped them make an appointment on my mobile phone for the next morning's expert number, and then took them to the express hotel opposite, helped them check in, paid the room fee, and left. On the way back to the hospital, the idea of setting up a volunteer service team was born in Liu Mengmeng's heart. "We want to sink high-quality medical resources to help more grassroots people solve the problem of 'difficulty in seeing a doctor'. ”
Gansu Province stretches more than 1,600 kilometers from east to west, but most of the high-quality medical service resources are concentrated in Lanzhou, the provincial capital, and the grassroots people have a strong demand for high-quality medical resources. "In the process of outpatient volunteer service, I found that many patients in prefectures and counties only go to major hospitals for treatment after minor illnesses become major illnesses, which invisibly increases their medical expenses. I thought that we should send doctors to the countryside, so that we can not only achieve the goal of 'curing the disease before it happens', establish health awareness, but also help the grassroots people save the cost of medical treatment." After telling the other four companions their ideas, they hit it off and officially established the Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University.
In March 2018, the team began to carry out the "Youth Together, Healthy Companions" free clinic volunteer service project, and organized young medical workers and volunteers to go into communities, schools, villages and grassroots hospitals to carry out medical services such as disease diagnosis and treatment, health consultation, and medical delivery for the masses.
From 5 people at the beginning to 535 people today, the team of young volunteers of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University has gradually grown, and experts and workers from various departments of the hospital have joined in, and the collective strength has gradually gathered. "We have set up a volunteer group, and before each free health clinic activity, we will release relevant information to the group, and everyone is very enthusiastic to sign up. Liu Mengmeng said with relief.
"Go to the grassroots, go to the countryside".
The "Youth Companion Health Companion" free clinic volunteer service project adopts the "1+t+x+n" service model. "1" is a goal, to solve the urgent and difficult problems of the grassroots people to see a doctor, and to deliver high-quality medical resources to the people's doorstep; "T" refers to a professional and formalized team, the Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University; "X" refers to x villages and communities in Gansu Province; "n" refers to n beneficiaries of the beneficiaries of the beneficiaries
Liu Mengmeng believes that rural areas, especially ethnic minority areas, do have a strong demand for primary medical resources. However, there are often differences in different regions, so the Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University focuses on the differences in the situation in different regions, conducts targeted and planned research and analysis of the disease spectrum and the medical needs of the masses in the areas where the free clinics are to be carried out, and carries out medical and medicine delivery to the countryside and health promotion. "For example, in Wuwei, perhaps because of dietary habits, the local people are more likely to have digestive tract tumors, so we will organize experts from gastroenterology, endocrinology and other departments to participate in the free clinic. ”
In the past five years, the team has gone to Gulang County, Gaotai County, Jingning County, Yuzhong County, Jishishan County and other places to carry out 41 volunteer services for sending doctors to the countryside and health education, with a total of 3More than 960,000 villagers and grassroots people received free medical treatment, and more than 130,000 yuan of medicine were sent to hospitals. In July 2023, the team of young volunteers from the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University organized medical staff and student volunteers to go to Yuli Township, Tarim Township, and Gulbagh Township in Xinjiang to carry out free health clinics.
In this way, we want to go to the grassroots and the countryside to reverse the erroneous health consciousness of the grassroots masses and tell them that they should be treated before they occur, and that they should not wait for a minor illness to become a major illness before seeking medical treatment. With the right health awareness, there may be fewer people suffering from serious illnesses to some extent. Liu Mengmeng believes that if the team spends a little more time and energy to deliver high-quality medical resources, the people who are helped can spend less money and suffer less.
"Volunteering as a career".
Doing it today and not doing it tomorrow is not called volunteering. Volunteer service should be developed as a cause and normalized. Talking about her views on volunteering, Liu Mengmeng said.
From 5 to 535 people, in the past five years, the Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University has been paying attention to team building, continuously improving team cohesion through a series of measures, and gradually exploring a path of normalized and standardized development. The Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University has always adhered to the volunteer service spirit of "dedication, friendship, mutual assistance and progress", and has also set a development vision, that is, through continuous efforts and accumulation, it will become an influential volunteer service team in Gansu Province and even the whole country. The service team has also established a sound organizational structure and formulated a series of rules and regulations, such as volunteer recruitment and management system, volunteer service activity management system, financial management system, etc., to ensure the standardization and institutionalization of team operation. In order to stimulate the enthusiasm and creativity of the volunteers, the service team has established a certain incentive mechanism and evaluation system, regularly commends and rewards the volunteers, such as awarding honorary certificates, etc., and records the volunteer hours and service quality as the basis for volunteer awards. In addition, the Youth League Committee of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University will also regularly organize volunteer recruitment and special training activities to attract willing and capable young people to join the team through in-hospital publicity and network promotion, and carry out targeted training in service concepts, medical knowledge, communication skills and other aspects in combination with multiple volunteer directions such as medical treatment, popular science, culture and education, health, love and mutual assistance, emergency rescue, health education, community walking, and free clinics in the countryside.
In addition to the free health clinic volunteer service project, the Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University has also carried out a series of volunteer service projects, such as "Love Volunteers" volunteer service in the hospital, a series of themed volunteer service activities to learn from Lei Fengyue, going into communities, schools and villages, carrying out medical treatment to the countryside, health education, first aid knowledge publicity and education activities, caring for special groups, emergency medical treatment volunteer service, etc. In June 2023, in order to do a good job in the medical security of the Lanzhou International Marathon, the service team selected 110 clinical medical staff in the hospital to serve as medical volunteers, and went all out to "escort" the runners.
In the past five years, the team has also won a series of honors, including the Bronze Award of the 3rd National Health Industry Youth Volunteer Service Project Competition, the Silver Award of the 6th Gansu Youth Volunteer Service Project Competition, the Bronze Award of the 7th Lanzhou Volunteer Service Project Competition, the 2022 "Top Ten Volunteer Service Organizations of Gansu Province" Lanzhou Outstanding Youth Volunteer Service Organization, the Gold Award of the 3rd Lanzhou University Volunteer Service Project Competition, and the 2022 Lanzhou University Youth Volunteer Service Organization Excellence Award. Liu Mengmeng believes that these honors are not only an incentive for individuals and the whole team, but also a recognition and an opportunity.
For the Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University, the original intention of the team has been realized and proven in five years, but to develop volunteer service as a career, it is necessary to continue to take a new step of "continuing to explore". "At present, we are focusing more on the diagnosis of basic diseases and the promotion of health knowledge, but we still need to focus more on the follow-up, and we want to gradually create more precise medical volunteer services. We are also exploring, for example, cooperation with medical alliances to achieve two-way rapid referral for patients who need medical treatment. In this way, it is not only the intervention of the disease in the early stage, but also the continuation of the later stage of the disease. Liu Mengmeng said.
On the basis of the existing ones, we also want to explore some projects focusing on the elderly, children with leukemia, and children with cleft lip and palate, and establish more volunteer service organizations, such as psychological comfort and counseling for the families of children with cleft lip and palate, and provide material, spiritual and medical help. I think this can also ease the doctor-patient relationship to a certain extent. Speaking of this, a smile appeared on Liu Mengmeng's face.
Creating more accurate medical volunteer service is not only the goal of the Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University, but also the difficulties faced in the process of long-term medical volunteer service. But fortunately, there are always people who are working hard and dedicating without asking for anything in return. "Everyone in the team is not joining for personal gain, everyone has a dedicated heart and the same goal, which is to bring high-quality medical resources to where they are needed. Liu Mengmeng said.
From 5 to 535 people, from enthusiasm to perseverance, the Youth Volunteer Service Team of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University has truly demonstrated the power of "gathering is a fire, scattering is full of stars" with five years of action. Their dedication, like a flame and a little starlight, ignites and illuminates countless people in need. They will also take firmer and more powerful steps to continue on this road of "going to the grassroots and going to the countryside."
Edit|Wang Xinyue.
Editor-in-charge|Peng Qian.