Visiting someone in the hospital is a compassionate effort from one person to another person who is in
need of comfort. The attention involves the ability of the visitor to show concern in order to ease the
other person's pain and suffering.
What is a Visiting Heart?
A Visiting Heart is anyone who is willing to share their time with someone in the hospital. Yes, anyone can become a Visiting Heart! It's something that doesn't take any special skill or talent, but rather a simple desire to aid someone in need of fellowship.
It's appreciated by individuals who have been hospitalized for any reason, and have nobody to aid or comfort them. The simple act of donating a small portion of your time to another person goes a long way, especially during a difficult situation.
"And maybe you're someone with the "gift of gab," yes, that will do just fine too, especially for someone who is lonely and just needs someone to talk to."
When friends and family visit someone at a hospital, they play important roles in the recovery of a patient, especially a child. Hospitals in El Paso welcome family members, siblings, and friends to visit. To ensure patient safety, it is important that visitors follow hospital guidelines.
Customize your visit..
Your generous contribution of time can come in several ways - showing compassion, providing a gift, offering advice, providing entertainment, becoming friends, or just being physically present and spending time with someone. You may not realize it, but just being present in the same room can provide encouragement for someone who needs it.
Who has the right to visit a patient in a hospital?
Anyone has a legal right to visit someone in the hospital along as the patient allows the visit. The patient, as well as the patient's legal guardian, can give permission. In the past, hospitals could restrict friends, co-workers and other non-related individuals to only close family members. But in 2010, a federal law changed how hospitals can regulate visitors, and now any hospital that receives federal funding must grant visitation privileges to all visitors, regardless of whether they're legally or biologically related to the patient.
Hospitals can still place certain restrictions on visitation hours and limit the number of visitors at one time or during a specific time span. They can also deny access to patients based on safety concerns.
Based on principles of compassion and understanding, Visiting Hearts was founded on the true life experiences of Joe H. Uranga. His experiences inspired the idea for a unique way to connect with others in need. The idea is to invite caring individuals to sign up and create a profile, and then submit that profile so that others can view your profile and learn a little about you. Once your profile is active, you are now a Visiting Heart. As a Visiting Heart, others who are in the hospital, respite or in a home care situation can view your profile and contact you and request your companionship. Visiting Hearts are asked to provide a list their interests, hobbies, lifestyle, age, gender and language(s) they speak and post it in their own member profile.
"Just about anybody with the desire to give attention to someone in need can qualify as a visiting heart. You're not required to possess any special talent or skill, rather, just the desire to aid someone in need of fellowship!"