How volunteers help during coronavirus. Stories in faces

Volunteering instead of panic
Volunteer movements as the answer of the Pandemia of Coronavirus arose around the world. People provide psychological assistance completely for free, deliver and manually create personal protective equipment for doctors, which now have an acute need, bring the elderly medicines and products, take the overexposure of animals whose owners fell ill.

Russia did not stand aside. For example, Moscow has already created several dozen online charts, where volunteers gathered, ready to help doctors, people aged and everyone who was in a difficult situation due to the spread of coronavirus. Many of them are already actively providing assistance. Who are these people and why they do not sit at home without work even in conditions of universal self -isolation, our correspondent Victoria Odissonova recognized.

Olga, 42 years old

Online volunteer: collects donations for the fund using online lectures

-I have two classes outside of volunteer activities: I am a designer in the museum and the organizer of the space. Usually we have been working with clients in private houses, but since I have been a volunteer for more than 10 years, we had an idea to help the Vera fund to organize a storage system with them. Once I went to them in a volunteer room where all sorts of consumables are stored, and realized that it was simply necessary to put things in order there. This is already professional deformation (laughs). I offered this idea to the Coordinator of the Hospice, threw a cry among colleagues: at 13 pairs of hands we came and put things in order just before the New Year. Other coordinators saw photos, and we began to receive requests for analysis.

This year we were going to continue, but everything was somehow postponed. As a result, I decided to at least prepare a general introductory lecture for volunteers so that everyone could master the basic principles of the storage system and maintain order. But quarantine began - and the Hospice coordinator proposed to translate the lecture online, and then send the video to everyone interested in donations.

On Monday (March 30), I held a first lecture for 15 employees of the fund. I initially wanted to make a step -by -step instruction for the hospice, but I had to make a lecture more universal. For hospice (and generally public spaces) there are nuances for organizing order. At home, you can agree with all the inhabitants of the apartment, where and what to put.

In the hospice, the storage system should be as multifunctional as possible

And understandable for any, especially the new employee. In such public spaces, such a analysis noticeably facilitates the work and increases the effectiveness of employees.

We plan to make a series of such lectures on the organization of space. This is very useful information, especially now, when all houses are on the remote. But if the workplace of the house is not organized, then the work will not go. At least, conditionally, you should have the same box in which you will put your things after a “working day”, put it on the refrigerator at night so that the children do not smash everything, and get it again in the morning.

You can watch the master classes online and leave the donation here.

Vyacheslav, 18 years old

Zoovolonter: took a dog and two cats for overexposure from a neighbor who went for self -isolation

-My neighbor returned from Italy about three weeks ago, and he, together with the whole family, was sent to Kommunarka. At first he just asked me to walk with the dog. And now he and his wife and the children decided to self -invaluate to Togliatti and asked me to take a dog of Corgi and two cats to him. Of course, they have better much more than in the shelter.

Why put animals with additional stress?

Why the neighbor didn’t take the dog with him - I don't know. He does not pay me for animals, they just live with me. My dad or me is walking with dogs now: today I went out with you - it is cool too that they were taken out once again. Our dogs, in principle, are used to walking quite quickly: if I used to walk and rushed before studying before studying, then they walked for 15 minutes, if not, then forty minutes in the park. Now we are walking 10-15 minutes 100 meters from the house: on the leash we went around everything around. Ordinary passers -by began to go around five meters: before they could come up, stroke the dogs. Not now.

If now the neighbors or acquaintances had such a situation that there was no one to leave the animal with, and they are taken to the hospital, I would take them, why not?

We ourselves have two dogs and a cat. Natural menagerie. There is still a parrot left!

If you want to help animals that are left without hosts, you can become a member of the Zoo telegram channel.

Natalia, 36 years old

AutoVolonter: Dishes dinners to the wards of the Vera Foundation

- In general, I have my own business: the process was established in it, so there was time to engage in volunteering. At some point, I just realized that I really had a lot of free time, but how useful it is to take it-I did not know. I have been looking for a very long time, even asked to mentally send me some idea. The decision to help this fund and its wards - it was such a way out of the comfort zone, because I was afraid, like, probably, many beginners. I understood that oncology was not contagious, but, to my shame, I was afraid of this all my life and did not know how to talk with such people as to behave with them. I tried to go around this topic, it seemed to me that I had a prosperous life, and all this does not concern me. I always helped, but mostly financially: somewhere I have auto payments, somewhere this is a one-time major donation. But it has always been like this: to give money, regret animals, old men and children, but not to do something yourself.

I have been a volunteer not so long ago: maybe for two months. Usually my help was that I could take someone from the wards of the fund to the station, usually these were children with my parents (I have a children's chair, which facilitates the task). Or meet at the station and take it to the hospital. I also helped in the transportation of humanitarian aid in the hospice or between hospices. And another direction is the diet for those who do not live in a hospice, but are at home.

Now my business is paused, and I continue to volunteer and so far I am only engaged in the transportation of dinners.

The fund is also now in self -isolation mode, tries not to strain the volunteers in non -term affairs. But food is urgent: the wards of the fund are sitting in self -isolation. I now take food to one grandfather three times a week: in one set of food just for a couple of days, so in about a day I come to him.

In all other respects, I am now observing the government and the regime of self -isolation. Perhaps the fact that I drive in my personal car only with my volunteer activity is the only “violation” of this isolation. But I sincerely do not consider it dangerous: in all other situations I walk in gloves and a mask, and when transmitting food, I leave the package at the door.

Here you can help with the current needs of the fund.

Roman, 25 years old

"Shop" volunteer: buys foods and medicines for the elderly residents of his home

- I noticed this initiative two weeks ago: it is called Covidarity, and if I am not mistaken, then this movement came to us from St. Petersburg thanks to Sasha Krylenkova ( Alexander Krylenkova is one of the founders of the Covid Archi, explains to the volunteers how to help residents of their own home or district. - Ed. ). It all started with hanging in their own house or area of ​​the leaflet with a proposal to enter the contacts of people who are ready to help: buy products or medicines for people who are afraid to leave home during the pandemic. I hung the same leaflet in my entrance that I was ready to help, here is my phone. And plus he created a chat in which he united a dozen activists of our area, who did the same in their homes. This is mainly help for the elderly and people with various respiratory diseases for which this virus is most dangerous.

The mechanism as a whole is this: you get a clear order, even, in addition to the list of products, give the very name of the store where to go. You go out in protective equipment, buy everything, then you wrap a bag of food in another bag so that nothing falls on the street, bring it, take it out of the second package, put it at the door and then either ask to transfer money to the card, or if there is no such opportunity, you take cash.

So far, there are only isolated cases of contacting us for help. Our society, unlike the generally accepted point of view, unfortunately, is very atomized: no one trusts each other. And there are two points: a low level of trust and the habit of relying on yourself. Many are simply inconvenient to ask someone. We discussed this in the chat and decided that at first it was necessary to start house chats, meet there, and then act. But we do not lose hope: even if it doesn’t work out, we offered our help. Moreover, it is better to act at this time than to inactive. Now you act, it means you exist.

You can help here.

Christina, 40 years old

Volunteer psychologist: advises doctors

- In my first profession, I am a producer and write scripts. In parallel, psychotherapy was always interesting to me, so I received the second higher and also engage in group therapy and conduct personal techniques. Now it has become impossible to engage in production activities: more than 50 people are forbidden to gather. Therefore, I have more time for a consultation - now I can do this from morning to evening.

I had no experience of volunteer activities before, therefore, apparently, some human qualities suggested me that it was needed now. The psychologist to some extent helping the profession. Now doctors are in the most extreme conditions, as they experience great psychological and physical activity. They need volunteer assistance in the first place.

Pandemia has a lot during the usual daily life of a person to her head. If ordinary people were without work, they have a lot of time, and they suffer more from the fact that they have nowhere to put it, then doctors have a completely different situation. They are already facing a question regarding psychological stress. They look at the experience of Italy when several people come with the same diagnosis of coronavirus, but of different ages: one young, the other old. Who to treat first of all? And this is not a problem of ethics - this is a problem of lack of hands.

Many doctors, especially those who are directly in contact with infectious patients, are prohibited from seeing their family.

And sometimes there is no time to call. Accordingly, a vacuum situation arises, when you are only talking to the wall and rush to it. In such a situation, we create this volunteer service.

I still do not see difficulties in volunteer activities. Perhaps because we have just started this movement. There is no internal tremor either. In connection with the crisis, the first 10 days were indeed anxiety, but I somehow managed to adapt, accept this situation. This is very important. But forcibly you will not accept it: the time should pass. You know, there are stages of grief. This is probably very similar: denial, anger, etc. It is important not to get stuck at these stages and reach adoption.

I urge all the other people who are even on an unpaid vacation and are now sitting at home, be sure to do something. It is not necessary to be a psychologist and help doctors. You can go to the "State Services" website and register as a volunteer: activities in this situation helps. This is my recommendation.

For psychological help, you can contact here