THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 5, 1995 TAG: 9503030186
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 20 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PHYLLIS SPEIDELL, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 70 lines
Quality of life is more than a phrase to a group of volunteers who, for the last 13 years, have helped scores of local residents remain at home, surrounded by their families, the last days of their lives.
Hospice Volunteers of the Portsmouth Area Inc. provides home support and care for people with life-threatening illnesses and their families in Portsmouth, northern Suffolk and the Deep Creek and Western Branch sections of Chesapeake.
The program enables the family and patient to have ``complete control of their wishes for the last days because acute-care facilities are no longer the place to go and die,'' said executive director Dottie Reish of Suffolk.
Interest in hospice care is increasing to the extent that Hospice Volunteers of Portsmouth serves an average of 11 families each month. ``We are assigning volunteers,'' Reish said.
When a patient enters the program, the attending physician, a registered nurse, a medical social worker and a trained hospice volunteer may be augmented by therapists, dietitians, pharmacists and other medical professionals.
Gladys Simons, a 72-year-old cancer patient, has been part of the hospice program since her doctor recommended it in October. Cheryl Wright, Simons' niece, and her husband and two children live with Simons in her Cradock home and are her primary caregivers.
For Wright, a weekly visit from the hospice volunteer, Rebecca Foreman, is a welcome respite in her round-the-clock caregiver duties. Foreman, a Glensheallah resident, spends her visits chatting over coffee with Simons, allowing Wright a chance to leave the house for a few hours.
Hope Boffa, a hospice volunteer from near Holland in Suffolk, has been with the program since 1992, and has worked with three different patients.
Several years ago, Boffa suffered a stroke that left her unable to use the left side of her body but able to relate to her patients. ``I am a good listener and felt I could be there for somebody,'' Boffa said. ``It is really fulfilling although you go through your own mourning when the patient dies.''
There are no fees for services by volunteers. For the last three years, the hospice program has been funded primarily by the Portsmouth General Hospital Foundation, but the grant will not be renewed in full. The program will rely on fund-raising projects to continue its work.
More volunteers are needed if the program is to continue growing, Reish added. Especially needed are homemakers, students, retirees or shift workers, who might be able to volunteer during the day.
Volunteers do not need any medical background. They will be trained by the hospice program before they are assigned to a patient. The volunteers assist with respite care, transportation, errands, insurance and legal matters, funeral planning and bereavement support for the family.
``We offer a lot of practical help to the family unit and the volunteers provide a lot of friendship and support,'' Reish said. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by JOSEPH JOHN KOTLOWSKI
Volunteer Rebecca Foreman, right, gives cancer patient Gladys Simons
a hug at Simons' residence in Portsmouth. Foreman also was a cancer
patient 15 years ago.
AT A GLANCE
What: Orientation for prospective volunteers
When: Wednesday, 7-8:30 p.m.
Where: Maryview Medical Center, Conference Room B
Reservations: 398-4783
by CNB