Newspaper Page Text
Kiwanis Club
The Lee County Ledger, Wednesday, November 17, 2010, Page 11C
Learns About Hospice Care
Special to the Ledger
It’s a subject people often
don’t like to think about,
even though ultimately it
can be a richly rewarding
experience for terminal
patients and their family
and friends during the final
days of life.
Hospice care has been
a growing trend in this
country over the last 40
years, and as the aging
baby-boomer population
grows it will most likely
continue to expand. On
November 8, the Kiwanis
Club of Dougherty County
heard about the services in
this particular medical field
available in the Albany
area, courtesy of Dr. Lane
Price, medical director of
Albany Community Hos
pice (ACH).
In hospice. Dr. Price told
the Kiwanians, “The focus
is not on dying, but on
living every day as much
as you can” until the end
comes.
While hospice care in
the U.S. is basically still
in its infancy - it was first
implemented here as a pilot
program in the 1970s - the
hospice concept actually
traces its roots as far back
as the 11th Century during
the Crusades in the Middle
East. Albany Community
Hospice was founded as
a department of Phoebe
Putney Hospital in 1985
and now serves a 13-county
territory stretching from
Plains on the north to
Pelham in the south,
and Georgetown on the
Alabama line to Ty Ty, just
west of Tifton.
While a sizeable segment
of ACH’s clients, as much
as 40 percent, are terminal
cancer patients, according
to Dr. Price, many have
been stricken with other
conditions. Illnesses range
from end-stage lung or
liver disease to Alzheimer’s
dementia, HIV/AIDS, or
“failure to thrive,” mean
ing a patient has simply
decided they are ready to
pass on. Hospice care is
also available for all ages.
ACH’s youngest patient
was an infant admitted to
the program on the day of
birth, because doctors had
told the parents the child
had a cardiac condition
that not be cured. The baby
survived for three weeks
surrounded by the love and
attention of family and the
hospice caregivers.
ACH offers hospice ser
vices to patients at home or
in assisted-care or nursing
home facilities, but a vital
part of its mission is ful
filled through the services
of Willson Hospice House,
the 39,000-square-foot
ACH center for in-patient
care opened earlier this
year in a 210-acre wood
land setting off Westover
Boulevard, said Dr. Price.
Willson House serves
patients “that need more
care than we can give them
at home,” such as ongoing
pain management. Willson
House, she added, is an
in-patient facility with 18
beds in private rooms that
include a bath and comfort
able extra bed space for
an overnight visitor. Each
room has French doors that
enable a patient’s bed to be
moved to an outside terrace
for fresh air as desired.
Patients are also allowed
visits by pets, as long as
they are kept on a leash or
confined to the room.
Willson Hospice House
also offers respite care,
which allows a client be
admitted for a short period
to allow a home caretaker
a break for a short vacation
or trip for other reasons. Dr.
Price said Medicare will
pay for respite care for up to
five days.
Hospice care is for
patients who have been cer
tified to have a life expec
tancy of six months or less.
(If a patient lives longer
than six months, however,
they can be recertified for
an additional period.) The
service includes home visits
at least once a week by a
registered nurse, social
workers who assist with
attaining benefits, and
the help of home health
aides. Nondenominational
chaplains are also available
for spiritual counseling,
although ACH encour
ages the involvement of a
patient’s home church. Dr.
Price said.
Also, said Dr. Price, a pa
tient doesn’t have to sign a
“do not resuscitate” medical
order to enter hospice care.
The hospice care program
was the second in a Novem
ber series of speakers ar
ranged by Dr. Phil Roberts
focusing on health-care
aspects in the Albany area.
ASU Marching Rams to perform in
Honda Battle of the Bands in January
Special to the Ledger
Albany State University
officials announced today
that the ASU Marching
Rams Show Band is one
of eight bands chosen to
participate in the Honda
Battle of the Bands Invita
tional Showcase on Jan. 29,
2011, at the Georgia Dome
in Atlanta.
A total of 45 marching
bands from Historically
Black Colleges and Uni
versities (HBCUs) began
competing for the eight
slots in the Honda Battle
of the Bands three months
ago. The selection process
included online voting
by fans and selection by
HBCU band directors and
presidents.
Honda will present
the ASU music program
$1,000 for participating in
the pre-qualifying process.
For being selected as one
of the eight bands to per
form in the Honda Battle
of the Bands, ASU will
receive $20,000 for music
scholarships.
Other HBCU marching
bands selected to perform
in the 2011 Honda Battle
of the Bands are Bethune-
Cookman University,
Clark Atlanta University,
Jackson State Univer
sity, South Carolina State
University, Tennessee State
University, Virginia State
University and Winston-
Salem State University.
The 2011 Honda Battle of
the Bands marks the ninth
year of the event.
This will be the fourth
time the ASU Marching
Rams Show Band has ap
peared in the Honda Battle
of the Bands. ASU also
participated in the 2007,
2008 and 2010 events.
“Being selected to
participate in the Honda
Battle of the Bands is a
tremendous honor,” said
Michael Decuir, direc
tor of ASU bands. “The
members of the ASU
Marching Rams are some
of the most dedicated and
hardest working students.
They strive for excellence
on the field, in the stands
and in the classroom. This
honor just proves that our
fans realize the band mem
bers’ commitment to our
university and appreciate
it enough to go online and
vote for us.”
Fans of the ASU March
ing Rams will have an
other opportunity to show
their support by voting
online for Jeremy John, an
ASU band member. John is
ASU’s nominee competing
for the Fox Music Experi
ence, a summer music
internship and immersion
program at the Twenti
eth Century Fox Studio
in Eos Angeles. In the
program, which is spon
sored by Honda, an intern
learns film and television
production firsthand. John
is a sophomore music
major from Albany who
graduated from Albany
High School. The Fox
Music Experience intern is
selected by popular online
vote at www.HondaBat-
tleoftheBands .com.
For more information
about the Honda Battle of
the Bands or to purchase
tickets to the event, visit
www.HondaBattleofthe-
Bands.com.
Submitted Photo
“Read to Me Kits” given to Phoebe Putney Memorial
Hospital Mother and Babies Program
On November 9, 2010, the Albany Council of the AT&T Pioneers gave
“Read to Me Kits” to Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital’s Mother
& Babies Program. Each kit contains a pair of socks, an outfit, an
information sheet about reading to your child, and a book for the
mother to read to her newborn. Pictured are: Monica White with
Phoebe and Freda Dudley, AT&T Pioneer, each holding a “Kit”.
More Than Two-Thirds of Georgians “Very
Willing” to Help Elderly or Disabled Prepare
Specicd to the Ledger
According to a 2010
study from the Georgia
Emergency Management
Agency’s (GEMA) Ready
Georgia campaign, 80
percent of Georgians are
“very willing” to help an
elderly or disabled family
member prepare for a large
scale emergency, while 73
percent said they are very
willing to help an elderly
or disabled neighbor or
friend prepare.
The National Family
Caregivers Association
says that more than 65
million Americans care for
loved ones with a chronic
illness or disability or the
frailties of old age, so it
is critical that they have
the tools and resources to
prepare loved ones for the
unexpected, say GEMA
officials.
“Since 1997, Americans
have celebrated National
Family Caregivers Month
in November as a time
to educate and empower
caregivers across the
country,” said Fisa Janak,
spokesperson for GEMA.
“Georgia’s caregivers can
turn to our Ready Geor
gia campaign to educate
themselves about the three
steps necessary to get
older Georgians and those
with special needs ready:
prepare, plan and stay
informed.”
Prepare a Ready Kit of
Emergency Supplies
Janak says to consider
how an emergency might
affect individual needs.
You may not have access
to a medical facility or
even a drugstore follow
ing a disaster, she advises,
so think about what kinds
of resources you use on a
daily basis and what you
might do if those resources
are limited or unavailable.
Ready Georgia offers these
tips:
• Create a Ready kit of
basic emergency supplies,
such as three days worth of
food and water, a weather
radio, a flashlight and bat
teries, first aid supplies and
a whistle to signal for help.
• Make a current, ac
curate list of your medica
tions. It is recommended
you keep one copy in
your Ready kit and hang
another copy on your
refrigerator, where it will
be available to EMS during
an emergency.
• Have at least a week’s
supply of extra medica
tions, and keep a copy of
prescriptions with dosage
or treatment information in
the Ready kit.
• Keep extra eyeglasses,
hearing aids, a wheelchair,
oxygen or extra equipment
on hand.
• Make copies of im
portant documents such
as insurance information,
family records, medical
records, wills, deeds, social
security number, bank ac
count information and tax
records.
• If patients have a com
munication disability, make
sure emergency informa
tion notes the best way to
communicate with them.
• Keep contact lists, docu
ments and medications in a
waterproof container.
• If those you care for
receive Social Security
or other federal disabil
ity benefit payments, help
them register their bank
account information in
advance with the U.S. De
partment of the Treasury
online at www.GoDirect.
org so they can continue to
access their money during
an emergency.
Make a Plan for What
You Will Do in an Emer
gency
According to Ready
Georgia, caregivers should
think through the details of
everyday life when caring
for another person. Think
of the people who assist
you, what modes of trans
portation you use or what
appointments you help
keep. For every aspect of
daily routines, Janak says
to plan an alternative pro
cedure and write it down.
• Come up with a sup
port network of friends
and family who might be
available to assist you in
caring for another person
during a disaster. Talk to
these people and ask them
to be part of your relative
or loved one’s personal
support network.
• Make sure someone
from your support network
has a key to your relative
or loved one’s home.
Create a list of contact
information and phone
numbers so you and your
relative or loved one will
know how to connect with
your support network dur
ing a disaster.
Share each aspect of the
emergency plan with a
friend or relative in another
area who would not be
impacted by the same
emergency.
If your relative or loved
one has pets, help them
plan in advance where
they will go if you have to
evacuate. Shelters can
not accept pets due to
public health reasons, so
it is important to find a
pet-friendly hotel or make
arrangements with family
and friends in advance.
Create an evacuation plan
from your relative or loved
one’s home or workplace
and decide where you will
go in case of a disaster.
This is particularly impor
tant for those who cannot
drive or do not have access
to a vehicle.
Practice your plan with
those who have agreed to
be part of your personal
support network.
Stay Informed about
What Might Happen
Some of the things you
can do to help someone
prepare for the unexpected,
such as assembling a
Ready kit and making an
emergency plan, are the
same regardless of the type
of emergency. However,
GEMA officials advise
that it is important to stay
informed about what can
happen in your region
and how to appropriately
respond. More informa
tion on the specific types
of emergencies that could
affect Georgia can be
found at Ready Georgia’s
website, www.ready.ga.gov.
The site also offers an
interactive preparedness
tool that generates custom
checklists of emergency
supplies and tailored com
munications plans that
caregivers can use to take
the guesswork out of pre
paring.
Until the end of the year.
Ready Georgia, the Ameri
can Red Cross and Georgia
VOAD are sponsoring
the ‘Get a Kit, Give a Kit’
initiative. By visiting
www.GeorgiaRedCross.
org/GetKit, Georgians
can purchase Ready kits,
weather radios and first
aid kits for themselves and
their patients.
Residents can also donate
toward the purchase of
Ready kits for Georgia
disaster survivors, and ev
ery person who donates to
the ‘Get a Kit, Give a Kit’
campaign will be entered
to win a football auto
graphed by Ovie Mughelli,
fullback for the Atlanta
Falcons.