I have seen many patients in chronic pain, it’s not an easy sight to see, some cuss at you, some cry at you and some even spit at you when they can’t get what they want. Then there are those who go down the road of finding their own solution to easing that awful pain. I actually have had several, who have done just this. I have smelled their evil ways, if you know what I mean. I had this patient that had chronic diabetic ulcers to his feet, to the point where he had no toe

When you have worked in home care for as long as I have, you often have a sense of when there is going to be a difficult case that Challenges you. It’s not because your boss says “good luck to you” after she hands you the referral, or when the referral itself gives you the clue of a tough case by the type of medications that the patient takes. It’s often when you arrive at the home itself that you know how bad it is going to be. You can be lost and unable to find the home

BAPTISM BY FIRE I started out at the VNA as per-dium, which meant that I saw patients on an as needed basis, I just wanted to get my feet wet, see what this job was really like. I soon realized that I really liked it and wanted a full time position, so I applied for one with the team that covered what is known as the “coastal” area, which was way down south where no one else wanted to go, but me. I got the position and soon found that I was working for one of the nicest peo