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Celebrate Excellent Care

Incredible experience with Beebe Healthcare’s Hospital at Home

By Theresa Pommerenk

I am writing this letter to let you know how grateful my family and I are to Beebe Healthcare – specifically, we are grateful for the “Hospital at Home Program.”

In September 2021, my 86-year-old father was admitted to Beebe and diagnosed with COVID-19. The Beebe staff was amazingly wonderful. The care dad received exceeded our expectations. Within hours of his diagnosis, he began responding to the treatment suggested by the providers.

Ultimately, of course, dad wanted to be home. Isolation from his family was not his preference. He needed and wanted the comfort of being in his own home so we were elated when his care team called to inform us that dad would be eligible for the Hospital at Home program – and we agreed. Beebe Healthcare was the first healthcare system in Delaware to offer a Hospital at Home program for patients who meet the specific criteria.

 Once he was brought home, the Hospital at Home staff was immediately involved and visited three times daily. Right away, dad’s condition began to drastically improve as did his desire and motivation to get better. Despite his age, the nurses that came were devoted to providing the best care they could to help him achieve his goal of making it to his granddaughter’s wedding.

Thanks to Celia Auchenbauch and nurses Phyliss Saunders, Cheryl Palmer, and Colette Adore – care from these incredible caretakers was exceptional. Their commitment and dedication to their profession and to my dad was inspiring. Nurse Practitioner, Kelly Henshaw, came four times a week to see dad and she was exceptional. Actually, without fail, every staff member who visited took the time to make sure we were educated and updated on my dad’s condition and that we knew what next steps were for his care. When we needed some clarification, some nurses even shared personal stories that helped us understand and relate to whatever we needed to watch out for or just be aware of.

In addition to clinical visits, we were given a special phone line to contact the hospital. Once when we lost power, I called about dad’s oxygen and in what seemed like minutes, the oxygen company was at our door. The whole process was a well-oiled machine and, as grateful as we are for the clinical and operational support, I cannot leave out the dietary staff. This team called every morning with the daily menu and promptly delivered it – exactly right – each and every day.

I truly believe that if it weren’t for this program and the extraordinary nurses –as well as NP Krista Henshaw and entire dietary staff, my dad would not have made the recovery that he has. These were all amazing people who were knowledgeable, kind and extremely professional. They made it possible for dad to recover at home with incredible clinical support. His pulmonologist is amazed. He says dad is doing better than ever! Being with his family, sitting in his own living room was healing for my dad and peaceful for us as a family.

I hope this program continues because my dad is living proof that it makes all the difference. And yes, he did attend his granddaughter’s wedding!