Volunteer Compliance Supports Hospices’ Sustainable Growth

Thursday, April 30, 2026

As reported by Hospice News, Holly Vossel

Hospice volunteerism is not only a core requirement for providers, but it is also a significant part of their ability to grow amid rising demand.

Volunteer recruitment and retention can be a challenging obstacle in the hospice space, said Jennifer Scurry, co-founder and administrator of Indiana-based Caring Cove Hospice LLC. Hospices compete with a variety of community organizations in the hunt for reliable volunteers, including other providers.

Hospices need strong oversight and leadership to help attract and keep volunteers, Scurry said. Closely monitoring volunteer hours and their areas of growing interest is key.

“Volunteer coordinators really are the heroes,” Scurry said during the Hospice News ELEVATE conference. “It is very difficult to recruit volunteers. Having a great volunteer coordinator, someone who is organized, definitely someone who is patient … That’s been the biggest factor for us in order to meet our 5% [requirement] is having a really strong volunteer coordinator and celebrating them. They are vital in making sure you have a successful program.”

Medicare Conditions of Participation (CoPs) require volunteers to provide at least 5% of hospice patient care hours through direct patient care or daily administrative services.

Factors in the equation of hospice compliance include having a balance of technology systems and human leadership oversight that help to track volunteer participation. This is according to Wade Udelhoven, talent acquisition manager of the hospice and palliative care provider Agrace, which is based in Wisconsin.

Hospices with solid volunteer retention have employed various strategies to understand individuals’ interests, needs and goals, Udelhoven said. Among the strategic approaches is developing strong community relationships across diverse groups and organizations. This allows hospices to connect with volunteers who are representative of the community they serve and understand their needs, he explained.

Building strong volunteer pipelines through community relationships involves time and collaboration. Hospices need to keep this in mind as they think about sustainable growth and maintaining compliance with volunteer requirements, Udelhoven said.

“When you’re going into a community, it’s really a whole brand new thing,” Udelhoven told Hospice News at the conference. “Convincing people to want to join your organization and meet that 5% can be daunting. We need to invest upfront in marketing materials in communities where maybe people aren’t familiar with your organization. How do we build that awareness so that people are interested [in] volunteering before they’ve ever had an experience with us?”

Reaching and maintaining, or surpassing, the 5% volunteer requirement takes a multifaceted approach, said Shaena Whitney, director of volunteer services at Texas-based Angel Hands Hospice and Palliative Care. Hospices need an organized process for tracking volunteers hours and tasks, Whitney said during the ELEVATE conference.

Also important is recognizing emerging areas of growing volunteer interest, she added. End-of-life doula volunteers have increasingly stepped into the hospice and home care space, according to Whitney. Collaborating with doula training and educational programs could be key for hospices to build and grow their next generation of volunteers, she said.

“There has been a beautiful thing happening where so many people are finding out about end-of-life doulas and wanting to become doulas,” Whitney told Hospice News. “I have been receiving a lot of people coming to me saying, ‘Hey, can I volunteer with you directly in your hospice?’ I think we’ll be seeing a lot of doulas coming in of all different generations and with different goals, different techniques that they use.”