The Volunteer Services Department of LAC+USC Medical Center serves the need for volunteers medical center wide.

The Director of Volunteer Services works in collaboration with many hospital administrators, who have recognized the value of ancillary services, to create and operate a viable patient service delivery component for the medical center.

In an effort to meet the needs of the predominately economically disadvantaged patient population of General Hospital, many special programs have been established to help provide patients with services.

Because of the varied backgrounds of patients, an emphasis has been placed on meeting the needs of the culturally diverse patient population. Volunteers come from many different cultural backgrounds and speak a variety of languages. Each of these volunteers contributes significantly to the improvement of the environment of care for the patients receiving medical treatment.

The size and complexity of the student volunteer programs are vast: Health Career Junior Volunteers (Candy Striper Volunteers), Department of Emergency Medicine, College Volunteers, and Occupational Therapy. Approximately 500 volunteers are actively volunteering.