As a proud member of the Blue Brigade since 2004, I wish to clarify some of the concerns raised in Eileen Herbert’s letter to the editor.

I volunteer at Royal Victoria Hospital, in the second-busiest emergency room in Ontario. I wish to assure the writer, as well as the general public, that any volunteer in any department who is provided access to patient charts abides by the strict privacy code that is the law in all healthcare facilities in Ontario, which prevents any personal information from leaving the hospital.

As a healthcare professional in this province, I am sure the writer is more than familiar with this legislation.

With regard to SARS - yes, this was a learning experience for every healthcare professional in this province. I wish to also point out that the only purpose for which the chart is consulted by a volunteer in the RVH ER is to confirm the name of the patient and any necessary isolation precautions.

This is to determine if we need to don protective gear, such as gowns, gloves, or masks, to prevent the transmission of a contagious illness to ourselves or to others.

Perhaps the writer's true concern is that unionized employees might experience some form of hardship as a result of the volunteer contributions at RVH.

As someone who is planning to become a registered nurse and is currently enrolled in post-secondary education to make that goal a reality, I am beginning to question the wisdom of this goal if this is the sort of work environment in which I may find myself working.