Fig. 3

Volunteer and executive workflow and protocol. Description: Steps: (1) The ICUBP applicant reviews the ICUBP’s website (https://www.icubridgeprogram.org/) to ensure they fulfill the program’s requirements and have their documentation and required information in order. The applicant fills out 2 separate forms (~ 20 min) that automatically generate and pre-populate the required PDF documents for the ICUBP and each of its hospital, minimizing the program’s focus on form completion. The 3rd form is optional and is a 12-min anonymous equity and diversity survey to assess the composition of students applying to the program. (2) If the application is complete and all the appropriate information is given, the application is approved by the ICUBP team and the program’s university student group partners interview the applicant according to a standardized form developed by the ICUBP. Once the interview is completed and the form submitted, the ICUBP executive team makes the final decision on all applicants. For additional details on the automations and integrations involved in Steps 1 and 2, please refer to: https://doi.org/10.36834/cmej.73818. Steps 3 and 4 are the ICUBP’s transitional period to accommodate the changing availabilities and schedules of students that occur between semesters. (3) If the applicant is accepted into the program, they and the current cohort of volunteers will be invited to fill out our semester survey and provide their availabilities for the upcoming semester on a rolling admissions basis due to their being limited spots/shifts available within the program and hospitals. Volunteer priority goes as follows: current volunteers > returning volunteers > new volunteers. The application deadline for new volunteers is the 20th of the 3rd month of every semester in order to provide some time for applicants to be reviewed, interviewed, and give their availabilities. Though this varies according to each unit/hospital’s needs, the ICUBP offers 28 possible 4-h weekly shifts, which further increases the accessibility of the program as it can accommodate a variety of schedules. Students are paired up primarily according to their availabilities, but if the availabilities allow for it, the ICUBP executive team does their best to pair new volunteers with more experienced ones and considers other factors to optimize volunteer experience and program impact. (4) New volunteers or students that wish to switch to a new site must attend orientations that are hosted by the ICUBP Hospital Coordinator and Volunteer Representative, with the help of the ICUBP’s hospital staff representatives, which include the hospital’s volunteer manager who completes the necessary in-person volunteer registration tasks (police checks, hospital IDs, etc.) and ICU staff who help with touring the ICU. Volunteers can begin volunteering and shadowing. (5) (Optional) If the volunteer wishes, they can apply to the ICUBP executive team when the application form opens at the end of the Winter semester, though there may be exceptional recruitment periods throughout the year depending on the executive team’s needs. Generally, the ICUBP recruits and gives priority to applicants that have volunteered previously with the ICUBP, particularly for VHM positions, where familiarity with volunteering and the ICU environment is crucial. However, executive positions are open to the general university population. Executive applicants must fill out 1 form and if approved, go on to be interviewed by the executive team, who are guided by an interview form that standardizes the executive application system according to the applicant’s position of interest