HARRIS, NY — Jeanne Zager, photographed on Halloween, came to Garnet Health Medical Center - Catskills a little over two years ago as a volunteer.  Her assignment is a general one: She works wherever she is needed.   She was needed in the lobby. 

“I would meet people coming in that need to be directed to whatever service they’re looking for,” Zager said. “That’s in the front when people come in and they don’t know where to go and they don’t know where to register.” Since many people are nervous, Zager also walks them to their appointments. As they walk, she talks about what to expect, hoping to decrease their stress.

“Sometimes when people come in and I meet them, they’ll say, ‘Oh, you’re so nice,’” Zager said. When she tells them that she is a volunteer, they sometimes say they’d like to volunteer as well.  “‘Why don’t you do it?’” she asks, knowing volunteers are always needed.  When they leave the hospital after their appointment, Zager talks to them again and tells them, “I hope you were greeted warmly, welcomed and directed where you needed to go.” She says it’s so easy to do.  “You just need to smile.” 

After teaching English as a second language to students at BOCES and a 17-year career as a Head Start teacher, Zager retired in 2021 and became a volunteer at Garnet because “I loved the hospital, I’ve used it myself, and my mom was a volunteer here many years ago,” she said.  She had also been employed at Garnet before, as a nurse’s aide, working in the staffing office.

Her past experiences made volunteering at Garnet the perfect opportunity.  “I’m used to approaching people, introducing myself, and trying to make them feel comfortable,” she said.  “When I was working in the schools, I tried to make parents feel comfortable about leaving their children with me.  And I’m just kind of friendly and talkative.”

She originally thought she would be working on the NODA team when she signed up to volunteer, but she hasn’t been called for that assignment. NODA stands for No One Dies Alone, and requires specific training.  “Sometimes we get people that have no family, and it’s end-of-life, and we don’t want them to die alone,” she explained. The NODA volunteer stays with the patients, sings, reads, holds their hands and learns about their journey through life.

Zager also visits patients in their rooms on the fifth floor, which is the medical admissions floor.  When patients come into the hospital as in-patients, they go directly to the fifth floor.  Sometimes they are admitted on short notice, having no time to bring a change of clothing or something to read.  The hospital has a Care Closet to help them with those things. Zager said, “I’ll ask them what kind of books they enjoy and try to find some books for them.  We also have spare clothing in the closet for people that need it.”

If patients say they’re food insecure, Garnet will send them home with a food basket and a hygiene tote bag containing such things as toothpaste, toothbrushes, toilet paper, shampoo and deodorant.

Zager has a regular schedule, in which she comes into the hospital one day every week.  She usually arrives at about 8 a.m. and doesn’t leave before noon.  If she is needed at times when she is not scheduled to be there and can accommodate the request, she will gladly do it.   For example, when the hospital was selling tickets for its golf tournament and needed her, Zager came in several additional times that week. 

She is currently one of approximately 20 volunteers on campus.  Volunteers can be assigned to work in the kitchen, in environmental services, guest services and the mail room.  They can also provide clerical duties or do patient advocacy, depending on where volunteers are needed.  Additional volunteers do special events for the hospital.  These special-event volunteers include students from local schools. If a volunteer is needed on short notice, Jodi Goodman, director of patient experience, who oversees the volunteer program, sends out a notice to ask who can come in on an emergency basis.

One day, soon after Zager began volunteering at Garnet, a patient who had been discharged from the emergency room was sitting in the lobby, waiting for a ride that didn’t come.  Zager was working in the lobby at the time and she noticed that the patient seemed to need some help.  She went over and stayed in the lobby with the patient for several hours, until the ride arrived.  For that, Zager was honored with a BEE award.  BEE stands for Being Excellent and Exceptional.

For the future, Zager said she would like just to continue doing what she’s been doing and to try to do her best.