Volunteer-crafted Twiddle Muffs Keep Hospice Patients Engaged
By Chelsea Cook-McCarrell, General Manager for VITAS® Healthcare Anyone who has ever witnessed the agitated and nervous behavior of a patient with dementia or Alzheimer’s, or seen nursing home residents in wheelchairs seemingly staring into space for hours on end: Meet twiddle muff—and meet 65-year-old Wanda, a VITAS Healthcare volunteer who makes them. The twiddle muff does exactly […]
Near the End of Life, a Bedside Salute Means So Much To Veterans
By Chelsea Cook-McCarrell, General Manager for VITAS® Healthcare As the family of patient José Pacheco gathered at his home for a veteran’s recognition ceremony, the elderly veteran began talking about his service during World War II. Some of Mr. Pacheco’s family members had never heard his stories, including a grandson who had asked to be […]
Hospice Patient Skydives Once More, Thanks to VITAS and Virtual Reality
By Chelsea Cook-McCarrell, General Manager for VITAS® Healthcare From the cramped cabin of the aircraft, VITAS Healthcare patient Kim peered out through the open door and took in the landscape as it stretched to meet the horizon. In the next moment, she was dropping from 10,000 feet, reminding her senses: You are alive. Kim couldn’t […]
VITAS® Healthcare: Here for You When Life Matters Most
By Chelsea Cook-McCarrell, General Manager for VITAS® Healthcare One of the biggest challenges for families caring for loved ones near the end of life is when and how to make the decision to change from active and aggressive treatment to care that focuses on comfort and quality of life. Referred to as hospice or palliative […]
A Time to Explore Hospice Facts
By Tana Villanueva, General Manager for VITAS® Healthcare One of the comments we frequently hear at VITAS® Healthcare from our patients and their families is a very heartfelt sentiment that we hope to change through education: “I wish I had known about hospice sooner.” Hospice is a medical specialty supporting both patients and their families […]
Hospice Month: A Time to Explore Hospice Facts
By Tana Villanueva, General Manager for VITAS® Healthcare One of the comments we frequently hear at VITAS® Healthcare from our patients and their families is a very heartfelt sentiment that we hope to change through education: “I wish I had known about hospice sooner.” November’s designation as National Hospice Month is the perfect opportunity to […]
Lifelong Friends Say “I Do” at a Hospice Wedding
By Tana Villanueva, General Manager for VITAS® Healthcare For 35 years, Donn and Charla have been lifelong friends—steadfast companions through life in a non-romantic-but-always-close relationship. In early 2020, Donn was diagnosed with brain cancer, and in May, he was admitted to a hospital unit under the compassionate care of VITAS® Healthcare. One day in June, […]
More Than a Melody: Music Therapy Brings Out the Best in Patients, Caregivers
By Tana Villanueva, General Manager for VITAS® Healthcare Peggy, a music therapist for VITAS Healthcare, strums a G major and lets the chord ring out. “I’m in love–I’m all shook up,” she sings, and she’s not the only one. VITAS patient Patricia, in her 80s and living with dementia, sings every word she remembers and mouths the […]
