09/08/2023
From the Heart
Fighting back tears, she told me she had been sleeping in the living room for over 4 years. I met Mrs. Poole in the hallway when she asked where she could place a nomination for a Daisy Award. The Daisy award is an international award given to a nurse who gives extraordinary compassionate care. She told me she had so much trouble choosing just one of our nurses to nominate. She was emotional as she told me how grateful she was for the care she received from the nurses and therapists.
Mrs. Poole, a lovely strong lady, spent years battling health issues. She endured hospitalizations with life threatening infections, amputations, wound infections, multiple rounds of antibiotics, and physical rehabilitation. She lost time and had no memory of Thanksgivings and Christmases. Her husband, whom she describes as her angel, wasnβt always allowed to visit her. Her battle became so dark that she asked God to take her, but he didnβt. We are so thankful after her last hospitalization; she came to us at AMG Specialty Hospital.
Mrs. Poole came to us because she still needed life-saving IV antibiotics and more extensive wound care treatment than she could receive at home or in another setting. People are admitted to Long Term Acute Care Hospitals (LTACHs) when they can leave a regular acute care hospital but are too sick or fragile to go home or be admitted to a rehab hospital or other facility. Thankfully, here at AMG, an LTACH, her wounds and infection responded, and she was able to participate in our physical and occupational therapies.
We are so honored to have had the opportunity to help Mrs. Poole regain her ability to live in her home the way she wants and deserves. She told us, βYβall gave me my hope and my goals.β Her goal was to be able to get to her bed. She said it had been so long since she had been able to sleep in her bed. It meant so much to her. We are honored to have helped heal her infection and help her find the strength and rehabilitation techniques to get back to her own bedroom.
Her tears are joyful because after years, she is now able to use her assistive devices in a way that allows her to get to the bedroom and sleep in her own bed. Though we will miss seeing her and the sweet tender interaction between her and her husband, we are happy Mrs. Poole finally gets to enjoy her home. Her living room will again be a living room.