Abstract / Summary
Abstract Background Volunteers are critical for linking palliative care services to communities. Despite rapid growth in research on volunteers’ roles, training, and related areas, most studies have been conducted in Western countries. Given cultural and policy differences between China and Western nations, this study investigated the current status of Chinese palliative care volunteers, focusing on recruitment, training, and service delivery. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted among medical institutions in Zhejiang Province, East China. Questionnaires were distributed to staff in charge of palliative care volunteer services at participating institutions. The chi-square test with Monte Carlo simulation was used for group comparisons, and univariate and multivariate binary logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate the relationships between medical institution type, training, feedback, management system, and volunteer attrition. Results A total of 69 medical institutions had 1133 palliative care volunteers, predominantly women (76.70%) aged 30–59 years (52.07%). The annual total number of recruitment reached 1301, with prominent problems including insufficient recruitment volume, high volunteer attrition, non-standardized recruitment procedures, and inconsistent volunteer quality. Annual recruitment-attrition ratio was 28.67% (373/1301), and the main cause of attrition was inadequate service motivation. General hospitals had significantly higher rates of unified training, feedback system, and management system, and lower annual attrition, than community hospitals and nursing homes (all P < 0.05). Binary logistic regression revealed that post-service feedback and management system were significantly associated with palliative care volunteer attrition. Conclusions Several challenges remain in the management of palliative care volunteers in China, including insufficient recruitment scale, non-standardized recruitment procedures, high attrition rates, overly simplistic training models, a lack of effective feedback mechanisms, and inadequate service evaluation and incentive systems. Therefore, future research and practice should establish standardized protocols for the recruitment, training, and service delivery of palliative care volunteers, as well as develop sustainable and effective incentive mechanisms. Trial registration Not applicable.