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Hospice Austin’s Blog
Regardless of Ability to Pay
A patient came in to Hospice Austin’s Christopher House who was not able to eat and was nonverbal except to say “yes” “no,” and “whoops.” He had no family that anyone knew of. Hospice Austin’s Christopher House RN and Team Leader Keisha Jones realized he could swallow and asked him if he was hungry.
Unprecedented Care
Since having a close loved one receive hospice care years ago and having a friend draw his last breath at Hospice Austin’s Christopher House, I have known and respected the incredible work of the Hospice Austin staff for quite some time. Now I am privileged to chair Hospice Austin’s Board of Directors, which has given me a closer view. I admire what I see: I’m so impressed each day by the positive things I witness about the Hospice Austin team.
How to Plan a Memorial Service on a Budget
Regardless of whether you’ve had the chance to prepare for it, losing a loved one is a time of grief, raw emotion, and stress. The last thing a family in mourning needs is to be worried about the steep costs of memorial services.
Grieving in Isolation
Sara Sroufe was busy sewing masks for the residents and staff at her parents’ assisted living facility in Dallas when she learned that both parents had tested positive for COVID-19. Her parents were taken to the hospital. Her mother was soon released, and Sara brought her home to care for her. Sara’s father died a few days later.
Anticipatory Grief
This time of social distancing can make caring for a seriously ill loved one even more isolating. Hospice Austin has created a family and caregiver support group to provide a safe space to explore, process, and share anticipatory grief.
Lifting Up Our Community: The St. David’s Foundation
Hospice Austin knew that 2020 would have its challenges, even before the pandemic. The warehouse next to Hospice Austin’s Christopher House was slated for demolition with a 5-story high-rise to be built in its place. Hospice Austin was faced with a difficult choice: temporarily suspend or relocate inpatient care, or leave Christopher House open but possibly have patients disturbed by the construction?
Breaking Down Barriers to Care
As a company, Hospice Austin’s values are based on the foundations of respect, compassion, and dignity. That’s who we are and what we bring to the community we serve. While Hospice Austin is proud of our diverse workforce and the patient population we care for, we realize that there is still much to be done. The coronavirus pandemic has starkly underscored the disparity in our healthcare system.
Our mission has always been to care for anyone who needs us, regardless of their race, their diagnosis, or their ability to pay. We reaffirm that commitment and to breaking down barriers to care wherever we encounter them.
Thank You
Two days after it became apparent that the pandemic would affect Texas, when all was pandemonium and empty shelves at Austin grocery stores, HEB contacted Hospice Austin on a Sunday night to ask how they could help. Hospice Austin has been the grateful recipient of...
Rising to the Challenge
One of our patients in a nursing facility used to see his daughter every day. He’s elderly, and almost completely deaf. His Hospice Austin nurse, Sara Templeton, said that though he wears a hearing aid, he can only make out some of what you say if you put your mouth to his ear and yell. Seeing his daughter was the highlight of his day, but of course that ended when his facility had to restrict visitors due to COVID-19.
Precarity
Precarity is the moment we are living in. It’s not easy and most of us are ready to get safely to the other side of this scary railroad bridge. To do that we need one another, all of us, working together to keep one another safe, fed, and well cared for. We also need self-compassion. Lots of it. More than ever. Because, while we have been through other hard things, we haven’t ever been through this particular hard thing.
