Today, many people participate in volunteer activities in various fields; however, governments and institutions that use volunteers as an auxiliary/subcontract workforce hinder them from maximizing their potential and strength. While the number of hospital volunteers in Japan has increased under the government's promotion policy, most of their activities remain as subcontracted work. However, Ms. Z's activities at the department of hematology and oncology of Y Hospital for 20 years go beyond such subcontracted work. In this article, I focus on the “perception” of the hospital staff that enables the expansion of Z's volunteer activities. First, I confirm three perceptions— “disrespect,” “threat,” and “burden” —that hinder the expansion of volunteer activities. Then, I examine how the Y hospital staff perceive Z's volunteer activities, contrasting this with the three hindering perceptions. The results of my analysis show that 1) the staff of the ward find Z difficult to replace, 2) the staff regard Z as “a member of the team” and a “supporter,” and 3) Z's activities improve the quality of care for patients and their families. Therefore, the staff do not regard the increase in their workload while cooperating with Ms. Z as a burden. Finally, I discuss the practical implication of these results for the issues of subcontracting.