by admin | Nov 19, 2018 | Volunteering
There is a reason I got the opportunity to be part of Hospice Austin. Hospice kept coming up in my life. First my grandmother had hospice care in San Antonio. She was at home and near the end, dealing with multiple cancers and emphysema. A hospice nurse was with us,...
by admin | Nov 9, 2018 | Bereavement
Everything seemed perfectly normal in the Brown household on that August day in 2015. Mara took the four kids shopping for school supplies while Steve worked; after dinner, the family went to the pool and then watched a meteor shower. That night, at about one am,...
by admin | Oct 26, 2018 | Uncategorized
The end of a person’s life can so easily be consumed by chaos – pain, fear, grief, denial. Hospice Austin chaplains meet patients where they are, and, in the process of listening, bring comfort, peace, and invite patients to reflect on and define the meaning of their...
by admin | Oct 18, 2018 | Uncategorized
Several years ago, a patient was readmitted to Hospice Austin’s Christopher House late on a Friday afternoon. When he had been there before, he’d met Hospice Austin volunteer Rusty and her therapy dog, Faraday, a loving one-eyed white lab. As soon as this patient was...
by admin | Aug 13, 2018 | Uncategorized
Rachel* lost her brother in an accident. Sandra lost her stepfather to suicide. Marty’s mom died of cancer and a few weeks later, his father died from complications of a heart attack. These are just some of the stories of the kids who attended Camp Erin Central Texas....
by admin | Aug 9, 2018 | End-of-life care, Hospice, Patients, Uncategorized
In February 2017, 16-year-old Madelyn Shoales was diagnosed with a rare type of brain cancer. She underwent surgery to remove the tumor, followed by six weeks of radiation. Two weeks after her surgery, she returned to school to finish out her sophomore year. Madelyn...
by admin | Jul 2, 2018 | Caregiving, End-of-life care, Season for Caring
We are delighted to announce that one of our patients, Charles Simpson, and his family will be featured in this year’s Austin American-Statesman’s Season for Caring campaign. Watch for the article in the Statesman on the Sunday after Thanksgiving! The Season for...
by admin | Jun 14, 2018 | Being Present, Caregiving, Hospice, Uncategorized
Stacy Pruitt became a certified nurse aide after witnessing the subpar care her grandmother received from a nursing aide in her small town. Suzanne Armistead became a CNA after seeing the excellent care her brother received. Andrew Stratman became a CNA after visiting...
by admin | Apr 3, 2018 | Uncategorized
She was sitting propped up in bed in one of the sun-filled corner rooms at Hospice Austin’s Christopher House. I saw that she had thick, dark hair with a few streaks of silver through it, noticeable because so often our patients have little or no hair after...
by admin | Mar 30, 2018 | Caregiving, End-of-life care, Hospice, Hospice social work, Melinda Marble, Uncategorized
Hospice Austin social workers are on the emotional front lines for patients and families coming to the end of life’s journey. They help families heal fractured relationships, plan funerals, access social support services, normalize symptoms, and give voice to their...
