Victory!!!

It's always important to celebrate the victories, even the small ones.  Today I am celebrating!  You see, I'm the new kid on the block, in a very small town.  Outsiders are not always welcome.  But I am also, as people may describe me, "tenacious as a bulldog".  I refuse to give up, especially when it comes to things I value - LOVE, LIFE, & HOSPICE.

Today I hit a milestone with a hospitalist.  A hospitalist is a physician that works in a hospital setting, taking care of patients who are admitted to the hospital, and overseeing their care during their stay. Our hospice agency receives referrals from these physicians when they plan for patient discharge.  If a patient is eligible for hospice services our hope is that they will be referred to us so that we can help the patients and families safely transition from the hospital to home with hospice.  It takes time to develop relationships and trust with these physicians.  They are extremely busy and I, after all, am not a peer.

I have been working hard to educate these hospitalists on hospice services, eligibility, and the proper time to refer.  I have also been working diligently to get them to utilize my experience and training in end-of-life care.

Today I was working with a patient and family who were planning for discharge and I had a recommendation that I felt strongly needed consideration to afford a safe and comfortable transfer. I called the physician to offer this recommendation and was initially met with resistance.  Instead of giving up, I went to find the hospitalist to make my case.  He wasn't completely thrilled, BUT, he took my recommendation and agreed to it.  HALLELUJAH!

It takes time and patience to earn the respect of anyone.  When you are in a position of lower authority it takes even longer.  But if you truly believe in  yourself and you hold true to your values and fight for what you believe in, it will pay off in the end.  It may take longer than you anticipated and you will hit many a brick wall.  I encourage you to chip away at that wall one piece at a time and soon you will remove enough bricks that you can crawl through and reach what you so longed for on the other side.