Hospice
Stories of Compassion
Every Life Has a Story
Every life has a story, and as a hospice nurse Cindy Adams gets to help patients write their final chapter. And while helping others, she is also creating her own beautiful life story.
Cindy didn’t set out to be a nurse. She didn’t even know it was what she wanted to do. Until she was 30, Cindy was a waitress, a part-time bookkeeper, and a stay-at-home mom to her three children. Then the dreaded day came when her beloved father became ill and was put on hospice care. Cindy had never experienced dealing with the death of a loved one. Her dad’s passing shattered her world. Little did she know her life’s purpose was about to be determined.
“When Dad took his last breath, my family and I were all holding him,” Cindy reflectively recalls. “I was scared. My life changed in that heartbeat. I didn’t know how to accept it. I was so thankful for the tenderness and compassion of the hospice team that not only cared for Dad, but helped my family and me through it all too.”
Now, a Hospice Nurse for Celtic Healthcare in Fayette County, Cindy is on the other side of the bed. She is now the one comforting the daughter, son, husband or wife when their loved one’s time comes to write their final chapter.
“Sometimes I feel selfish actually,” Cindy admits. “I receive so much more than I give. What I am given through my experience is not material. Sure I get paid, but I also receive something of the heart that nobody can take from me, and it is something I can also use and share with others. What I learn from every patient and every family makes me stronger and better at what I do.”
Each morning when she wakes up, Cindy tells herself that yesterday is done, tomorrow isn’t here yet, but what she does today matters. “I want to make a difference in someone’s life,” says Cindy. “Every day, I ask the Lord to guide the words on my lips, be my ears, guide my heart, and let me know what I can do to make a difference in someone’s life.”
And that she does! Spending final days and hours with patients and their families allows Cindy to help them deal with the “important stuff” like she did with patient Mary and her daughter recently.
After the physical needs of dealing with pain and comfort were taken care of, talks with Mary centered on going home, the wonderful life she lived, and being ready to join her husband. When Mary’s daughter finally reached the point of being ready to let go of Mom, Cindy knew the last two weeks while Mary laid in a coma in bed were meant for Mary’s daughter. They talked about how tired Mom was, how short our time on earth is, and how Mom’s spirit would always be with her. Sometimes they sat and talked into the wee hours of the morning.
As Cindy went through the respectful ritual of preparing Mary’s body after death, she contemplated, as she does with each patient, “I wonder if she’s happy now? What is it like on the other side? Did I make it any easier… any better?”
“Each death is a privilege and an honor to be a part of,” Cindy says as she gives her final gift of dignity to Mary and the gift of peace to Mary’s daughter through this humbling and heartfelt ritual.
Every life has a story, and as Abraham Lincoln once said, “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”
Celtic Healthcare would like to thank Cindy Adams and all of our Celtic homecare and hospice nurses, as well as nurses everywhere, for the extraordinary service they provide in the stories of people’s lives.
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The Dog Days of Volunteering
Being a hospice volunteer has no boundaries. We come in all shapes and sizes, ages, colors and backgrounds. You can even be fluffy, furry, and walk on four paws.
Like me – Jackson Colgan – hospice volunteer for Celtic Healthcare’s Hospice, HCC, in Northeast Pennsylvania.
My Dad, Josh Colgan, is the best dad a dog could ask for. He knows I need to have a purpose in my life, and he helps me fulfill it.
Dad rescued me about a year and a half ago when I was a year and a half old. I was found roaming the Ozark Mountains. Some friendly volunteer fire fighters delivered me to his waiting and loving arms, and we’ve been inseparable ever since.
I am part Great Pyrenees and part Akbash. I am almost six feet long from nose to tail and weigh about 160 pounds. I’m really pretty handsome if I do say so myself. However, my greatest joy in life is my love for people. Dad knows this. He understands it, and he looks for ways for me to express this love.
Originally, Dad thought I would be a great service dog. Dad has some medical conditions. I have a keen sense for these things, so I make sure I am there to help him when and where he needs me. Like when his alarm goes off and he doesn’t get out of bed, I nuzzle under his chin until he rises and shines. Or when he doesn’t see a curb, I stop and make sure he notices. But I have one big problem that keeps me from being a great service dog…. I love everyone! I can’t help it! A service dog is supposed to ignore everyone else and concentrate on just his master, but that is really hard for me because there are so many wonderful people in this world that need my love!
So Dad acknowledges that and loves that about me. He has found ways for me to express my love – like my job as hospice volunteer. You may not have realized it, but it takes a very special dog to be a hospice therapy dog (and I’m even certified at it!). Physically, it is ideal if you are either small enough to be in bed with a patient, or big and tall enough to reach them, even over a bed rail, on your own. So even though I’d love to be a lap dog, I’m tall enough to meet the second requirement.
I’ve only been a hospice volunteer for about a month now, but already my Dad said he knows it is my calling. (Apparently a passion for hospice runs in our family, because Dad’s mom is a hospice physical therapist.)
I visit our inpatient hospice unit and a skilled nursing home, Kingston Commons every week. I’m also going to start visiting the VA Hospital once a month. I would do it more often, but Dad says it would be too much for me. I can hike 8 miles and still come home full of vim and vigor, but after my hospice volunteering duties, I often sleep for 15 hours straight!
When I visit hospice patients and their families, I make sure I give attention to those that need it most. Somehow I can sense that. I can also tell if someone really isn’t interested in meeting me, and I respect that. When a patient is nearing the end, I have a special thing I do to let them know it is okay. I lay my head on their chest and just hang there with them for a while. I think it makes them feel better.
As good as I am with my hospice friends, I think I’m good for Dad too. He said if he didn’t have me, he probably wouldn’t have become a volunteer himself. Because of me, there are now two more volunteers helping hospice patients enjoy life when their time is limited.
If you’d like to learn more about me, I have a website and a Facebook page. You can connect with Dad and me at www.greatwhitepaws.com and http://www.facebook.com/#!/greatwhitepaws.
Thanks Dad, and thanks Celtic Healthcare/HCC for allowing me to do what I love!
Sincerely,
Jackson, CGC, RTD, READ
PS: In case you wondered about the initials after my name, I’m also a certified reading assistant. Sometimes kids have a hard time learning to read and get embarrassed and frustrated reading to their parents and teachers. I go to the library once a month and sit patiently while kids read their books to me and show me the pictures. I never make fun of them for struggling or getting a word wrong. I love kids too!
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