I am the real deal. I truly love my job as a hospice and health worker. I am not wandering through the hallways of this facility with blinders on. I don’t day dream about what I would like to be when I grow up. I don’t work the night shift because it’s the only available shift or for the premiums that go along with it. I don’t say I care and then do the opposite, I don’t slack off or fall asleep on the job. I don’t give your mom the wrong medications because I wasn’t paying attention, or forget to reposition your dad every two hours. I don’t leave the building or abandon my colleagues to do my share of the work. I answer you when you page for me and when I say I will be right back, I promise I will. If you call me to work an extra shift, chances are I’ll take it. I never show up late. I would never treat your grandparent like I would want to be treated, because I have learned that we all want different things. If I make a mistake, I promise that I will own up to it.
I have had the privilege to work with and learn from some wonderfully amazing people. And I have worked with some real phonies. I have watched them complain about other staff after they just got written up for some really terrible offense. I have seen people that accept a hug from your aunt and then snicker about how crazy and annoying she is.
I guarantee you that if an employee verbally or physically hurts your loved one, I will end it. I am not at all concerned about saving face or my job. I hate bullies. It unnerves my sensibilities to witness unloving, unfriendly, uncaring, unprofessional scum, walk the halls of your family members home, and disrespect or belittle them.
If you stick around long enough, I will learn all about your family and what you did for a living. I want to know what makes you tick. I am curious about everything YOU, and if you don’t mind, I would love to listen to the same story over and over. Please call me if you are lonely or afraid, or bored or too hot or too cold or want a midnight snack. Please know that if you spill your coffee or don’t make it to the bathroom in time, that you never have to say “I am sorry”.
You are a person to me. Not the number on your door. You are NOT a problem to be fixed, but an opportunity I cherish. You are not the means of which I make my living, but rather, much of what I live for. I enjoy coming to see you at 7 pm till 7am. I am sure you would rather be at your own house, and have privacy, to have certainty about who your neighbors are, to make your own meals and care for yourself. I can’t make all that is wrong, right. But you do have a guarantee, someone you can bet on. You have me. I hope that means something to you. Every one of you are a part of my Legacy. You have helped me find my purpose and I am grateful to have met you on this journey.
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