Several volunteers at Abbotsford Regional Hospital (ARH) were among 19 individuals who were presented on Sept. 21 with the Above and Beyond Awards from Fraser Health.
The awards are presented annually to employees, physicians and volunteers who go above and beyond to improve patient care and services in local communities.
Among the local recipients were several youth who were recognized as team leaders in the VolunTEEN program at ARH. They were presented with the Service Delivery Excellence Award.
The VolunTEEN program runs year-round thanks to 13 teen team leaders, who help recruit and retrain other youths in the program.
The leaders include: Japneet Gill, Dilraj Natt, Jadrien Bergonia, Harry Saini, Sahil Chawla, Harman Waring, Gagan Mahil, Gursimer Kaler, Shayne Oberhoffner, Harman Gill, Sarah Chae, Claire Abhi, and Sushil Dosanjh.
They coach their peers on providing excellent patient and family support – helping visitors find their way in the hospital, visiting patients, and easing their experience in hospital. Most of these youth leaders are interested in careers in medicine, with three writing their medical college admission tests during the summer.
They volunteer three hours each week, in addition to school and part-time job commitments, and often come in on holidays and weekends.
ARH volunteer David Ngan also received an award, in the Fraser Health Hero category.
Over the past eight years, Ngan has volunteered more than 1,000 hours in the hospital’s emergency department. Among his accomplishments, he developed a detailed map of the department to improve access, which is now in wide use in the unit.
He also mentors new recruits to ensure they’re trained to offer the best service, and he has created educational materials to guide them.
He has also assisted in creating new volunteer positions to enhance the department’s work.
Employees praise Ngan’s work ethic, high standards, commitment and engagement. Outside of his volunteer duties, they commend his community work and his fundraising in support of lung disease research.