My volunteer partner and I were finishing up our check-ins for our visit and were on our way to visit our last patient for that day, Martha. Visits with Martha in the past had been genial but otherwise largely uneventful. She loved to discuss relationships, both ours and hers. Alert, responsive, hilarious, and always appreciative … Continue reading “The Tea That Never Was”
Author: A Student
The Humanity in Effervescence
My first patient, Jane, was an animated talker and a lovable person. Visiting her was a surprisingly normal experience—every day I would come in and have a regular conversation with a regular person. A few visits in, I was walking through Jane’s doorway as usual, ready to say hi, but was stopped dead by her … Continue reading “The Humanity in Effervescence”
The Conversation of End of Life
My patient, whom I will refer to as George, is a 92 year old man with Alzheimer’s disease along with other medical diagnoses that impair everyday functioning. Due to his deteriorating mental and physical state, he resides in a locked unit. From the beginning of the hospice program, my volunteer partner and I learned about … Continue reading “The Conversation of End of Life”
At A Loss For Words
For most of my life, I have believed in the power of words—that if the right words were said in the right order at the right time, they could fix any problem that I encountered. Being a shy person by nature, whenever it was my turn to speak in a conversation, I would stammer and … Continue reading “At A Loss For Words”
Learning From Stories
I spent all of my time during the hospice program with one patient, Mrs. M. Some days she was mobile, and we would walk around the nursing home together. We would sit and rest when she needed to, but I was often amazed by how much she could walk. She spent other days laying in … Continue reading “Learning From Stories”
My Existential Quest
Brenda was dying, and she knew it. Her eyes were sad, and she only spoke in sighs and repeated the phrase “don’t worry about it.” She wasn’t despondent, but willing to smile and cheer up. Despite being admitted into a hospice for Parkinson’s, Brenda retained her individuality and creativity through the puzzles and toys, but … Continue reading “My Existential Quest”
A Hundred More Questions about Living
Greg and I had been laughing and swapping college stories for the better part of an hour when the window’s shifting sunlight caught his eye. He then looked over to that side of the room, where just a few weeks earlier, his wife used to lay in her cot. He was silent for a moment, … Continue reading “A Hundred More Questions about Living”
One Year Older
In the beginning of my hospice volunteer experience, my sole aim was to develop connections with patients. As my time as a volunteer concludes, I realized that I never want to stop doing just that—giving all of myself to the patients I care for. My very first patient was an older woman diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. … Continue reading “One Year Older”
Hospice Love
Every patient that I have met so far has been amazingly sweet to me, though one patient was particularly memorable. I hadn’t met actually met her in person, but instead made a phone call because I was sick that week. She appreciated our simple, five minute conversation so much that she asked for my name … Continue reading “Hospice Love”
Kim
When I attended the information session on becoming a hospice volunteer, I was unsure if this type of work would be right for me. I wasn’t even confident I knew what hospice meant. However, after consideration, I took a leap of faith and went through the onboarding process. A few months later, I finally saw … Continue reading “Kim”