Cruising With Hospice

Wednesday I went out with a hospice nurse. It was part of my community health clinical rotation. I cruised around with a hospice nurse and army man, let's call him "Bob". We visited a home in downtown KC, where Bob said seeing lots of cops around is good. I was surprised that the home we visited was nice and clean. I know that sounds terrible, but we were in a neighborhood where not everyone took care of their yard and some of the houses looked ready to fall down. The family had a pit bull who loved Bob but growled and barked at me. I have often thought that dogs could smell people who don't really like dogs. I don't hate dogs, they are just not my favorite animal. Anyway, it was an interesting visit. I learned that being a hospice nurse is more about coordinating care than it is about nursing. We helped put a lady into respite care, which is where the patient goes to a nursing home or someplace for a few days so the family taking care of the patient can have a break. It is a great service, but took up most of the day with phone calls and paperwork. It was crazy. However, after cruising around with hospice for 8 hours, it may be something I would like to do someday. That is all.