By AMY SHANKLAND
Sandwiched
I’ve learned many things throughout my mother’s cancer journey. One is how wonderful palliative care can be for our loved ones.
When Mom’s diagnosis was confirmed, my siblings and I were in a whirlwind. We had more conference calls in three months than I’ve ever had for my work in the same time period. When my brother Mark said the term “hospice,” I cringed.
We all know what that word means. Hospice provides relief, peace, and care to patients and their families. But once you bring in those wonderful hospice workers, you know someone you love is dying.
However, there’s another side to hospice companies – palliative care. I’ll be honest, I’d never heard of this term before. I didn’t even know how to say it! I do now: PAL-ee-uh-tiv. In my head I’ve repeated, “Nurse Practitioner Gigi is our PAL” to help me remember.
Palliative care is specialized medical care for people living with a serious illness (getpalliativecare.org). This type of care is focused on providing relief from the symptoms and stress of the illness. The goal is to improve quality of life for both the patient and the family.
And oh, has that goal been reached! All three of us researched companies and found Paradigm Health in Indianapolis. We learned that it’s important to start palliative care even before a patient begins to feel symptoms of their illness. That way you can be “ahead of the curve” to prevent a little bit of pain from turning into a lot of pain.
In May, Mom and I sat down with Gigi for the first time. Calling her “thorough” is an understatement! When she left Mom’s apartment, both of our brains were twirling – in a good way. Gigi thought of things I never would have.
Up until recently, Mom hasn’t felt anything from her cancer, which is a Godsend. However, in the past few weeks, she’s started to feel itchy due to the rash from her breast cancer. Gigi to the rescue! Mom’s been feeling better and we’re all relieved.
It’s wonderful to have Gigi on our team knowing she’s just a text or a call away. She works closely with Mom’s oncologist and visits Mom every month. She can visit her more down the road if need be.
The leading causes of death for seniors are heart disease, cancer, and chronic respiratory disease. If your elderly parent is facing one of these, I want to encourage you to research palliative care. I’m happy to add that Medicare covers it.
Hopefully, you’ll have a “pal” like Gigi – an angel who provides relief for all.