Many people have a passion that they develop and grow to love during their lifetime. For one of our patients, she dedicated many years of her life to performing and teaching students how to play the harp and piano. As a patient with Stage IV lung cancer, she has become increasingly weaker, forcing her to …
Being able to grant our hospice patients one last wish is always a very heartwarming experience for everyone involved. In this case, having the chance to facilitate a flyover for this WWII fighter pilot and Vietnam veteran, who had been flying for more than 40 years, had everyone involved feeling a …
Music therapy is an important part of what Hospice of the Midwest has to offer our patients. Our Music Therapist, Crystal Berkenes, provides services that help with pain management and end-of-life support. Crystal utilizes music and instrumentation to reach non-musical goals, increase self-expression and decrease anxiety or restlessness. Collaborating with team members who work with …
“Carol LOVES cats!” Community Liaison for Hospice of the Midwest, Nick Blees stated as he asked if we had a therapy cat and volunteer to visit Carol. Volunteer Lynnette had just the right cat, Noodle, to visit with Carol in her last weeks of life. Lynnette sat nearby as Carol would pet noodle, over and over …
Earlier this month Hospice of the Midwest partnered with Junior High students from Open World Learning (OWL) in the West St. Paul Art Department. Since then, we have received 250 handmade watercolor cards from their 7th and 8th grade classes! The students learned about our hospice care through our Volunteer/Bereavement Coordinator, Nichole Paladie, with an …
One basic value of hospice care is that no one should die alone without support or the presence of loved ones. In addition to caring for the patient, the loved ones of hospice patients deserve and benefit from support as well. Eleventh-hour volunteers are trained to keep vigil and provide that supportive presence to patients …
In March, Hospice of the Midwest (Iowa) offices hosted a food drive and donated the collected items to the local food pantries in the counties they serve. This was in line with the Quarter 1 Wellness focus of Social Wellness. The team members did a great job working together and giving back to the communities …
Hospice of the Midwest team, along with their families and dogs, walked in the Woodbury Days parade this past weekend! (8/24/2019) They’re always eager to be an active part of the community. What an awesome picture of their team! The ‘People in Purple!’
How fun! In July, the payroll and accounting team spent their evening at Tom Douglas’s Hipcooks cooking class for a team building exercise! They left feeling like professional cooks and closer as teammates.
Regardless of his situation, one ABODE patient’s last wish was to give his wife one final date night. Due to his declining condition, accomplishing this was simply not a viable option. As a result, two of the nurses who have worked with the sweet couple decided to bring the date to them. The two ladies …