“Great Nurses at Beebe Healthcare!”
By Deborah Fitzpatrick
Long-time resident and former mayor of South Bethany Beach, 93 year old Harry Woodruff was pleased to recognize the excellent nursing care he received from Beebe Healthcare. A former World War II bomber pilot, Harry knows about what it is to serve and be devoted to your job.
Harry’s daughter Cindy was visiting from Alexandria, Virginia, last December when Harry had a mild heart attack. Cindy decided to take a leave of absence from her teaching job as a school librarian to care for her dad.
Harry’s health was progressing well until September 2018, when he and Cindy were at Walgreens taking his blood pressure, because they were advised that the readings are more accurate than their digital monitor at home. While there, Harry recalls starting to have shortness of breath and feeling disoriented and told Cindy “I just don’t feel right.”
Cindy called for an ambulance, and when EMS arrived at Walgreens, they stabilized Harry and brought him to the Beebe Emergency Department. Harry was admitted and kept overnight for observation.
“I had the best room on the fifth floor – right behind the nurses’ station,” shared Harry. “I had very thorough tests. The nurses were so efficient, friendly, and were there for me all the time. My personal nurse, Jennifer Cheadle, was excellent. She is a darn good nurse!”
Cindy said the nurses who cared for her father were very responsive to the questions she and her brother Chuck had. “We never felt like we were intruding or interrupting Jen. She and her staff had a great sense of humor and always got answers for us.”
After being discharged from the hospital, Harry received 60 days of follow-up care from Beebe Home Health. Monica Banks was the nurse assigned to his home care for one to two times per week for two months. She would check his vitals: blood pressure, oxygen, and diabetes numbers, and report on his progress.
Cindy said, “Monica was incredibly funny and cheerful. She really knew how to handle my father. Monica said I could call her anytime. She was a great support system person for me.”
As part of Beebe’s Home Health program, Harry was also visited by an occupational therapist, physical therapist, and social worker. Mara, the physical therapist, remarked when she arrived at Harry’s home that she remembered taking care of his wife in his home four years earlier.
Beebe’s technology also played an important part in Harry’s home care. Beebe TeleHealth, a wireless system, was also connected to a tablet in Harry’s home to monitor his oxygen and blood pressure.
Beebe Home Care Services was recently named a “2018 HomeCare Elite Top Agency.” Dana Warrington, Director of Beebe Healthcare Home Care Services explains, “The 2018 HomeCare Elite designation is the compilation of the most successful home care providers in the United States. This market leading review names the top 25% of agencies based on performance reviews. This year those measures include quality of care, quality improvement, patient experience, best practices implementation and financial management.” Beebe Healthcare’s Home Health Care Services has received the HomeCare Elite Top Agency title for seven consecutive years.
“The goal of Beebe Home Health is to keep you out of the hospital,” shared Cindy. “As a caregiver, it’s good to know that you have a support system to help you. With my father’s mobility issues, it was great that they came to us rather than having us go to them.” Harry smiled and added, “We appreciate all they did for us!”
The Woodruff Family shared this story and made a gift to the Beebe Medical Foundation in honor of Jennifer Cheadle and Monica Banks. Beebe is a not-for-profit community healthcare system with a charitable mission to encourage healthy living, prevent illness, and restore optimal health for the people residing, working, or visiting in the communities we serve.
For more information about the Beebe Medical Foundation’s Celebrate Excellent Care program and how you can honor a Beebe team member and support Beebe Healthcare, our local non-profit community healthcare system, go towww.beebemedicalfoundation.org/cec.
Photo Caption: Harry Woodruff (seated) celebrates excellent care with Monica Banks, Dana Warrington, Cindy Woodruff (Harry’s daughter), Jennifer Cheadle and Tara Cooper
