One of our clients, Doris, just passed away…peacefully in her home surrounded by her family. We often hear this phrase when people die, but this I know is true about Doris. Doris has been our client for about nine months…not a very long time but we got to know her, her family and her situation very well. She had a myriad of medical issues much like most of our clients. However the way her family and doctors treated her was very different than what we observe.
We met Doris when she was being released from a Rehabilitation Center…one of the very best in our area…but not really wonderful at all according to the family. And that was the last facility Doris saw. Throughout many setbacks including blacking out from low blood pressure, severe bleeding and finally a major stroke, Doris was never sent to the hospital.
She received medical attention from a visiting doctor service which had emergency personnel who took their orders to keep Doris home from the family members and the doctor. Her own doctor came to see her when these emergencies occurred and provided medical support at home.
Private home care aides and a supportive family and GCM provided all the care, comfort and love Doris required at the end of her life. She was able to celebrate holidays, birthdays and the milestones that make life wonderful with her family. She interacted with her children at her own home when they visited. She listened to music and watched television in her own home.
Doris could have been in and out of hospitals the last nine months of her life and hooked up to machines in her final hours. Thanks to her family’s and medical team to keep her at home and her medical team’s willingness to do so as well, Doris lived and died a wonderful life.
