Interestingly, the son of one of the other survivors lives in Fairfield Glade - as did Dan. Dan and the local business man made the connection on a chance meeting and became close friends. Once, the two flew to Charleston SC where a Battleship idential the the one Dan and the man’s father had been on was dry docked.

Until the last month of his life, Dan was a constant presence at Monday Morning Patient Volunteer Meetings. More times than not, our meetings would end with ” Well, does anyone else thing else?” Dan always had “something else” in the form of a joke or a poem.

The jokes and poems were frequently a little off color, but no one was ever truly offended and it was part of the charm of Dan. But other time, his writing was very touching and honest. I often introduce Dan as the Poet Laureate of Hospice.

Let me share two (repeatable in public) poems by Dan:

Overjoyed I am Self-Employed

I now have a good job, I picked the right one.
Whatever I do, it’s about having fun.

When driving, I choose to drive fast or drive slow,
No longer say ”Yes” when I’d rather say “No”

I don’t care about eating food that I should,
If I’m eating it, it better taste good.

I will never be fussy about what I wear.
My clothes are not stylish, so what? I don’t care.

If things that I do make me look like a fool,
I don’t give a damn if they say “ I’m not cool”.

My rusty old Chevy is not fit for showing.
It’s fine if it gets me where I am going.

I stepped out naked to pick up the mail,
The old gal next door screamed, “You should be in jail!”

I told her there was not excuse for her scorn,
“Complain to The Lord, that the way I was born!”

Some people will say I’m too cranky and bold, well,
Let’s check THEM out when they’re eighty years old.

About Hospice

People who work with
the terminally ill,
who see illness at
it’s ugliest, and
suffering at it’s most painful
often try to insulate hearts
by laughing louder
and more often, and
tell sillier stories,
and often don’t sleep well,
and don’t get used to
seeing others hurting.

They open their hearts
and share the pain,
and help the families
face the unanswerable
question – Why?

They do not find peace
By building a wall
Between the patient
And themselves.

They find peace
by tearing down any wall
that may be there
and getting close,
and being there…
and listening.

To ensure that wishes are followed, be certain that the person appointed to be an agent understands your wishes. An agent has the legal right to make your decisions even if close family members disagree. If family members seem to oppose your decision to have an appointed agent, the following steps can help:
• Communicate in advance with family members who may object;
• Tell them in writing who the agent is and explain why you’ve chosen them; and/or
• Let them know that you do not wish to have them involved in the decision making process concerning your future medical care.

A candle was lit by a loved one or a hospice caregiver for each of the patients of Hospice of Cumberland County who passed in the last twelve months. Loved ones present also received a keepsake with Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 and a carnation. Music was provided by the New Rhythms Trio and Rev. Jim Cavanaugh provided the Invocation, Benediction and closing. Readings were also provided by Evy Nilsen, Jack Looney, June Garrett, and Patrick Cash.

Cumberland County had the privilege of caring for over 150 terminally ill patients and their families through our program,” said Melinda Brown, volunteer coordinator. “A part of that privilege included the opportunity to reflect on each patient’s memory during our memorial service. While the service is designed for the family and friends, our staff benefits as well. You can not help but to develop close bonds with the families that welcome you into their homes during this most difficult of times,” shared Brown.

Hospice is a concept of providing care designed to provide comfort, when a life limiting illness no longer responds to cure-oriented treatments. Hospice addresses the physical, social and spiritual needs of the patient and their family. This care is provided most often in the patient’s home, but can also be provided in other setting as well. Hospice of Cumberland County bills Medicare, TennCare and private insurances when patients have these, but we never bill a patient or family directly for care provided. This is made possible due to the support we receive in the local community.

The hospice philosophy holds that end-of-life care should emphasize quality of life.

A nationwide Gallup survey conducted for the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization produced five key outcomes:

Nine out of 10 adults would prefer to be cared for at home rather than in a hospital or nursing home if diagnosed with a terminal illness.

Hospice does provide the option of being cared for at a place the patient calls home: 96% of hospice care is provided in the patient’s home or place they call home.

An overwhelming majority of adults said they would be interested in the comprehensive program of care at home that hospice programs provide.
Yet most Americans know little or nothing about their eligibility for or availability of hospice.

When asked to name their greatest fear ssociated with death, respondents most cited “being a burden to family and friends,” followed by “pain” and “lack of control.”

Addressing the whole range of physical and psychological needs of the patient and his or her family in an interdisciplinary way is what makes hospice care so special.

90% of adults believe it is the family’s responsibility to care for the dying. Hospice provides families with the support needed to keep their loved one at home, and can take over fully to give the caretaker short “respite”
periods.

Most adults believe it would take a year or more to adjust to the death of a loved one. However, only 10% of adults have ever participated in a bereavement program or grief counseling following the death of a loved one.

Hospice programs offer one year of grief counseling for the surviving family and friends.

The holidays, especially the first ones after a loved one’s death, can be especially difficult for a person who is grieving. Friends and family members may be unsure how to act or what to say to support their grieving loved one during the holidays.
In general, the best way to help those who are grieving during the holidays is to let them know you care. They need to be remembered, and they need to know their loved ones are remembered, too. Local hospice grief counselors emphasize that friends and family members should never be afraid of saying or doing the wrong thing, because making an effort and showing concern will be appreciated.
Here are some tips that grieving people have shared:
1. Be supportive of the way your friend chooses to celebrate the holidays. Some may wish to follow traditions; others may choose to change their rituals.
2. Offer to help with tangible tasks such as baking, cleaning, or decorating. Seemingly simple tasks can be overwhelming while dealing with grief.
3. Invite the person to attend a religious service with you and your family.
4. Offer to help with holiday shopping or share your favorite catalogs or on-line shopping sites.
5. Invite your friend to your home for the holidays.
6. Inquire if your friend is interested in volunteering with you during the holiday season. Doing something for someone else, such as helping at a soup kitchen or working with children, may help him or her feel better about the holidays.
7. Make a donation in memory of your friend’s loved one, as a reminder that his or her special person is not forgotten.
8. Remember to avoid telling your friend that he or she should be “over it;” grief is an individual process and there are no right or wrong ways to grieve.
9. If your friend wants to talk about the deceased loved one or feelings associated with the loss, LISTEN. Don’t worry about being conversational…. just listen.
10. Remind the person you are thinking of him or her and the loved one who died. Cards, phone calls and visits are great ways to stay in touch.

Hospice of Cumberland County and Cumberland Medical Center are joining forces to offer Hospice care within the hospital, according to Patrick Cash, executive director of Hospice of Cumberland County.

“We are pleased to be able to work with CMC to provide inpatient Hospice care. The beneficiaries of this arrangement are the patients, both CMC’s and ours, who need to be in the hospital but who are in need of Hospice care,” said Cash.

Hospice will offer palliative, or comfort care, to patients within CMC in a variety of scenarios, according to Cash.

“Hospice provides palliative care to patients with a terminal diagnosis, patients for whom aggressive life saving treatment has been exhausted. Normally our services are rendered in the patient’s home, but this extension of our Hospice care will provide more patients opportunities to benefit,” he said.

Cash said Hospice of Cumberland County will provide Hospice care on an inpatient basis when a patient cannot go home from the hospital, or is at home and needs to return to the hospital or and as an intermediate step between hospitalization and home care.

“The scenarios here are several. Sometimes a patient in the hospital is nearing end of life and may not have a caretaker at home, or have a caretaker who is able to provide at home care. We can provide case management for that patient within the hospital, working closely with the CMC nurses and staff,” said Cash.

He said another situation is a patient who may be home with Hospice care and who worsens and needs around the clock nursing care. That patient can be admitted to the hospital while continuing to have Hospice care with the addition of the CMC nursing staff.

“Sometimes a patient nearing end of life is just too ill to go home but the family, and the physician, opts for Hospice care. We will now be able to provide that within the patient’s hospital room,” said Cash.

Patients can use inpatient Hospice care at CMC for up to 14 days at a time, according to Cash.

“Hospice of Cumberland County has been active in this community for nearly 20 years. We provide the priceless gifts of final days at home for those nearing end of life and for whom all life saving options have been exhausted. We will now be able to take our care into the hospital, benefiting the patient and the family. We offer palliative care, comfort measures, pain management at a time when it is most needed, both for the patient and the family,” said Cash.

Jim McMackin, CMC president and chief executive officer, says he is extremely pleased to have completed the details of the working arrangement with Hospice of Cumberland County.

“Hospice care will be available in any room of the hospital; it is not a given room or floor. Like Hospice itself, this is about comforting care. We are pleased that we will be able to bring the professional staff at Hospice of Cumberland County in to work with our professionals so as to maximize palliative care for those so in need of it, and for their families. This is just one more way for us to better serve our patients and our community,” he said.

Cumberland Medical Center is a 182 bed, not for profit hospital, established in 1950. The current hospital expansion project will be completed in May 2006 and will provide a complement of all private patient rooms.

Hospice of Cumberland County is a non profit organization whose mission it is to provide professional nursing and social services care to patients with terminal diagnosis for whom life saving options have been exhausted.

A recent letter from the daughter of a patient reminded us once again of how valued these items are. The letter thanked the “Hospice of Cumberland County Volunteers” for a beautiful crocheted lap quilt that her father had received. In recent years, we have seen many patients that were nearly inseparable from their quilts once they were received. Several patients have chosen to have them at their funerals.

While we cannot claim them as exclusively ours, Hospice of Cumberland County is blessed to have several groups and individuals that donate their time and talent making quilts and Afghans to be given to our patients. These include FFG first Baptist Church, Cumberland County Piecemakers, Patty Basone, Mildred Wheeler, Fairfield Glade Quilters, Helping Hands Ministry, Fan-Tastic Quilters and Jean Dempsey. We also have individuals walk into our office with quilts and Afghans who do not want to give their names.

While we get to seen the smiles and admiration of the quilts by the patients when they are received, it is those listed above that deserve the credit. While the quilts and Afghan vary as much and the people who receive them, they are, all make with love and true caring for their others, most of whom the quilters will never meet - we have patient care volunteers who directly with patients.