Join Our Medical Clinic Assistant Volunteer Team
If you are interested in assisting the operations of our family medicine and psychotherapy clinic, contributing to the wellbeing of patients, and learning about patient-centered care, then apply to be a Medical Assistant Volunteer at Grace Health Centre!
Medical Assistant Volunteers work alongside staff to support our physicians and psychotherapists in ensuring smooth daily operations. Under close supervision, you will receive comprehensive training from physicians and fellow staff to perform hands-on clinical duties and administrative tasks. Through this experience, volunteers gain exposure to the principles of medicine and how they are applied in clinical practice.
Volunteering at GHC offers many enriching educational opportunities. Family physicians often teach volunteers through discussion of medical cases, lab results, and emerging healthcare topics. They also offer opportunities to shadow medical assessments and small procedures, allowing volunteers to observe how long-term patient relationships and evidence-based medicine work together to improve health outcomes. These experiences provide volunteers a sneak peek into the multifaceted role of a family physician and encourage a deeper understanding of patient care dynamics.
At GHC, we pride ourselves on fostering a community that supports our volunteers in their journeys toward careers in healthcare while cultivating a sense of belonging among colleagues with shared aspirations.
Volunteers are trained and supervised by staff members to gain practical clinical experience.
Family Medicine:
- Perform clinical duties such as taking vital signs, shadowing patient consultations and procedures, and preventative care projects.
- Educate patients on proactive health measures such as routine vaccinations, cancer screenings, and diabetes management.
- Update and interpret electronic medical records by scanning documents, inputting patient information, preparing diagnostic tests, designing and coding customized forms, and implementing software features.
- Enhance efficiency of clinic operations by confirming appointments with patients, and maintaining the clinic’s PPE/vaccine inventories.
- Support the optimization of clinic operations for enhanced digitalization, business, IT support, and streamlined patient experiences.
Psychotherapy:
- Contribute to the marketing of psychotherapy services and advocating for mental health wellness to clinic patients and community.
- Support mental health client intake and offering customer services to ensure a smooth client experience for counselling.
- Learn and collaborate on different communication platforms and channels to inform patients/clients on updates, events, and important news.
- Support the technological enablement of our virtual psychotherapy groups for patients while collaborating with clinical team and observingpsychotherapy modalities in action.
- Translate English/Chinese of psychotherapy course materials and marketing elements for publishing development and advocacy.
This position is a rich opportunity to not only contribute to the well-being of a diverse patient population and community, but also gain invaluable communication, teamwork, and leadership skills.
Volunteer Testimonials
Many of our volunteers are successful in the application, interview, and subsequent admission process to graduate programs and/or professional careers in their field of training across Ontario, Canada, and abroad. They often cite this experience as a significant stepping stone to their accomplishment.
“I came to GHC with the goal of gaining patient experience and it did not disappoint! I was given the liberty to interact with patients and play a significant role in managing their health. I appreciate the doctors and the rest of the team for being super supportive in helping me gain confidence in taking patient vitals and administering flu shots. In addition, I was also able to meet other students with similar aspirations and it is great to know that you are not alone on this journey. Overall, the skills I developed at GHC have laid a solid foundation for me to build upon as I head off to medical school. I will forever be grateful to GHC for sowing the seed of patient-centered care in me and I will continue to practice this quality as a health clinician.” – I.R. 2023
“Volunteering at GHC is no ordinary extracurricular activity to supplement your application for graduate or professional programs. The roles and responsibilities of a GHC volunteer are diverse and also not commonly found in other healthcare settings. You are extensively trained to conduct vital sign check-ups; educate patients on accessible screening tools to detect early signs of cancer; and so many more! Furthermore, you will learn how to utilize electronic patient records, and interact with physicians that will be delighted to provide mentorship opportunities. This is a rewarding experience to give you clinical exposure in a primary care setting, and can even strengthen your resolve to become a future health care professional! I highly recommend volunteering at GHC. Volunteering at GHC is more than a simple experience to add on my CV; it helped me connect with like-minded individuals whom are working towards a common goal, and helped me realize I am not alone in my academic struggles in applying for medical school and ultimately getting into medical school! Long-lasting friendships were made, and in turn I grew to become a better version of myself. In my future endeavors I will periodically reflect upon my experience volunteering at GHC, and take pride in the impact I’ve made for others, as well as the growth and maturation I’ve received.” – J.F. 2022
Please visit here for more testimonials given by former volunteers.
Required Commitment
Volunteers who are most engaged, learn the most, and are offered leadership positions. This produces a higher quality experience for all, including fellow volunteers, staff, and patients. Volunteers are recruited on a rolling basis.
Year Round Program: For dedicated individuals who are able to commit a minimum of 10 hours per week within a 2 day/week shift cycle for a minimum of 12 months.
Application is NOT recommended if you cannot commit to the minimum number of hours per week. Volunteers who reduce their committed hours after onboarding will risk losing their opportunity.
Qualifications:
Applications for our volunteer positions are very competitive since these are unique opportunities not available anywhere else. Due to the extensive use of electronic devices, applications, and websites in our clinic, troubleshooting skills and experience are highly valuable assets. We serve a diverse group of patients from different cultural communities and we value proficiencies in other languages you may bring to support our patient care.
We prioritize post-secondary applicants who hold a minimum average of B+ (GPA: 3.30 out of 4.00).
Valuable skills: Analytical, Communication, Critical Thinking, Leadership, Collaboration, Organization, Data Management, Interpersonal, Clinical Management, Hardware and Software Management, Website Support, Coding
How to apply:
Applicants must complete our volunteer application form to be considered for an interview. We recruit volunteers for both our psychotherapy and family medicine divisions on a rolling basis. Please indicate in your application which program you would like to be considered for. You will be required to enter information regarding your time commitment and background/qualifications. You will also be required to submit a resume, cover letter, and your most recent transcript(s). We recommend you tailor your application materials based on the position you are applying for. Incomplete applications that do not include all required information will not be considered.
We thank all interested applicants, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.
If you have already applied, but have not heard back from us in previous academic terms, we encourage you to apply again in the next term.
We look forward to receiving your application today!