For the fifth year in a row, 90-year-old Clayton Klein of Fowlerville, Michigan, is walking 420 miles to raise awareness of hospice. Clayton began his walk on Friday, September 4, from Paradise and is scheduled to end his walk at the Ohio State Line on Monday, September 28.
Mr. Klein walks to raise money for the Sondra Seeley Scholarship Fund, which was created to provide educational opportunities for hospice staff who could not otherwise afford to attend Michigan Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (MHPCO) educational meetings.
Those
who would like to join Mr. Klein or make a donation to the
fund can view his walking schedule at www.mihospice.org or
contact him at clayton@firststep.net.
On
Saturday, September 5, Jennifer Besteman of Rudyard caught
up with Clayton in Trout Lake. Jennifer is Volunteer Services
Assistant for VitalCare Hospice of the Straits, and she wanted
to welcome Clayton to the EUP and support his efforts on
behalf of hospice. She was pleased with their encounter.
"He
is a very sweet man," said Jennifer, who works with hospice
volunteers in Mackinac County. "I'm looking forward
to walking with him next year," she said.
|
|
| Jennifer
Besteman of Rudyard, Volunteer Services
Assistant for VitalCare Hospice, caught up with Clayton
Klein in Trout Lake. Klein, 90, is walking
420 miles to support hospice staff across the state. |
|
Hospice
care is a particular type of compassionate care that addresses
all the needs of a person who becomes very ill, not just
the immediate physical needs, but also the emotional, psychological,
social and spiritual needs.
In addition, hospice addresses the needs of the family and friends of the ill person to the greatest extent possible so that all concerned can maintain dignity and quality of life. An important part of hospice is that patients and families help decide what care is right for them.
All patients have certain rights to care, which includes:
- Treatment related to the life-limiting illness that is included in the hospice plan of care, plus medical equipment and supplies, services, and coordination of care.
- Medications to control the pain and other symptoms of the life-limiting illness.
- Hospice inpatient care (both acute care and respite care) in a hospice facility.
- Home visits by hospice staff, plus skilled in-home nursing for crisis management.
- Consulting physicians.
- Volunteer support.
- Bereavement follow-up.
Hospice is a choice, not a requirement. The patient may choose to withdraw from the hospice plan of care at any time to seek other medical treatments that may become available.
For
more information about local hospice services, call 906-643-6753.
Back to the VitalCare News Page
to the Main Page |