Angela Will Never Forget Hospice Client
The 82-year-old client’s words were barely audible. As CAREGiver of the Month Angela Parkinson grasped the client’s hands, leaned in closer, listened carefully and intently studied the client’s lips, Angela could hear: “Don’t leave me.” Angela clinched the client’s hands just a little tighter and nodded in assurance.
Angela recalled: “I’d do anything for her. I got to know her well. I’d hold her hand, and she’d say, ‘Stay with me’ or ‘please feed me.’ I would have tears in my eyes when I had to leave at the end of a shift. Lots of times, I would stay a little longer to provide companionship.”
Angela began helping the hospice client, who had Parkinson’s disease, in January 2021 on behalf of Home Instead® of Martinsburg. “We developed a great relationship. Her whisper became a little louder and her words flowed more freely as I got her to come out of her shell. She lived with her daughter and son-in-law. As her daughter observed how I assisted her mother, we all became close. I felt welcome. I helped in every way I could, including feeding, rotating her regularly in bed and giving personal care. She was so thin and was suffering,” Angela explained.
One day in early March, a Home Instead staff member called Angela with the sorrowful news her client had passed away. Angela admitted: “I struggled with her death. I was sad, but I also kept thinking, ‘At least she’s not suffering now.’ ”
Angela admitted: “Losing someone is by far the roughest part of this job, but it comes with the territory. I love taking care of people, and I’ve always been in the care field. I’ve pretty much done it all. I’ve taken care of the elderly and children and all ages in between. I worked for 15 years with a senior center that provided in-home, and I also worked for seven years with a facility for the mentally disabled.”
Angela, who had her third child and left the workforce, decided to return when her daughter turned 1. The Martinsburg resident was looking for an in-home care job when she noticed a television commercial for the award-winning Home Instead franchise that serves West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle. Angela joined Home Instead in the late spring of 2018. “Home Instead is flexible with hours, which fit my schedule better than any other job I had held. It is a good thing Home Instead helps me out because my family is important,” Angela said.
In addition to her family, which includes two daughters and a son, Angela also took care of a grandmother for nearly 15 years until she died at age 78 in March. “Every week, I went to her house to clean and get groceries. I washed her hair, ran errands and paid her bills. My mom depended on me to give baths to Grandma, who moved in with my mother. It was a 24/7 care situation for us. She had lung cancer and lots of different medical challenges. During the final six months, she started to get dementia and was hallucinating,” Angela said.
Angela also has had her medical challenges since joining Home Instead, and she praised Home Instead for its patience as she was treated for a cancerous leg tumor. “Altogether, I was out of work three months and came back to work in December 2020. I had surgery in July 2020, experienced serious complications and later took chemo treatments. In early March, the good news was that the tumor was shrinking. I received even better news at the end of the month – my doctor said the chemo did its job, and the tumor is gone. Praise God!” Angela explained.
“Home Instead is so awesome. They called often and checked up on me. Home Instead said, ‘Your job is waiting. Just give us the date when you can start.’ I appreciate Home Instead for keeping me. I began to pick up shifts for the past three months and take every shift I can.”
Angela earned the franchise’s Hands and Heart award and also had received a certificate for reaching a high number of work hours before she was honored as CAREGiver of the Month for March 2021. Allyson Starling, who works in human relations department and in recruitment and retention, announced Angela’s honor on behalf of owner Keith Clay’s franchise.
“I really like Home Instead. Maybe I’ll be with them a long time. The old saying is, ‘If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.’ But maybe I’d go back to school someday and earn a degree in a medical field. I had gone to school in an attempt to earn my LPN years ago but never finished,” Angela said. “I’ve always done a good job taking care of people, I give 150 percent. I’ve always respected the people I take care of. One day, I’ll be needing someone. I will want the same kind of care I gave to others.”
All Home Instead CAREGivers are screened, trained, bonded and insured. For inquiries about employment, please call (304) 263-4472 or apply online. For further information about Home Instead, visit our website.
