Page 36 - Senior Link Magazine Summer 2018- Online Magazine

HONORING SENIORS

A During most weeks, I have the opportunity to have a medical
student follow me around. As a chaplain, I take these third-year
students into nursing homes, private homes, and other places
Milkshake where our hospice patients live. Some have never seen a person
actively dying, and few are aware of what is most important to a
a Day dying person.
The well-trained medical students understand the diagnoses
and the corresponding medication list. But often, on these visits,
they can watch and learn how to maneuver through many more
variables than a clinic or hospital setting allows.
Doctors and medical students are taught to ask, “How are you?”
“Are your medications working?” “Does it hurt when I do this?”
By Kara Leslie The medical students are trained to ask their patients important
questions so that they can better treat them. As a chaplain, I,
too, ask questions, yet some of them are of a different nature. I
ask about pain and if the patient is eating or sleeping well. But
I also ask: “How is your spirit today?” or “How is your soul?”
and “What is most important to you today?” These questions
give me a view into their fear, sadness, joy and hope. They are
indicatory of my patient’s whole being.
One day, I went to see a patient, and he was sitting in his bed.
A white-jacketed medical student with a stethoscope wrapped
around his neck followed me. The student took the chair, and I
sat on the end of the bed. My patient had a marker in his hand,
and he was trying to write his name in some shirts that were
given to him over the weekend. The man was so weak, he was
not able to retrieve the shirts from the closet. I asked how I could
help, and he gave directions on what needed to be done.
As I sat there writing his name on his new wardrobe, we talked
about his day and how he was feeling. I asked specifically about
his pain, and he reported that it was high. I asked how he would
like for us to handle it and gave him some suggestions. “Have
you been taking your medications?” “Yes,” he responded.
“Would you like for us to call the nurse?” “No,” he answered.
“I’m used to it.” The medical student made some suggestions
about medications and how they could help him feel better. The
patient was appreciative. I asked again if we could call his nurse,
and he said no again. Because he had been clear on what he
wanted, I honored his wishes.
He then told me to make sure I put his name big in the shirts
because he really liked them. (There were many other names
already crossed out in the back of each of them.) I showed him
my first one. He approved. After I had hung up all his new
clothes, I sat back down on the foot of his bed and asked, “What
is most important to you today?”
“You know what I would really like is a milkshake and not
one of those healthy ones!” He clearly had tasted one of the
nutritional shakes and didn’t like them at all. “Do you have a

36 Lubbock Senior LinkLubbock Senior Link
36