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Community Corner

Hospice Volunteer Gives Time, Energy to Help Others at the End of their Lives

After 30 years in nursing, Dearborn resident Susan Dey finds giving others support and comfort during their final days is a mission that never ends.

It’s been three years since Susan Dey, a seasoned nurse who spent the lion’s share of her career at Heritage Hospital, filed her retirement papers. But instead of that move in 2008 marking the beginning of a period of rest, she resolved to keep helping the sick.

Dey, a volunteer for Angela Hospice in Livonia for the past four years, is still
putting in hours in service of others, and hopes other people begin to think
about hospice volunteerism and end of life issues beyond November, which is National Hospice Month.

“When I worked at the hospital, there was no time to just sit and talk with a patient,” said Dey, now 70. “What I miss the most about my job is the ability to help someone and provide support, and that’s what we do here (at the hospice). It’s our job to make sure the patients and the families have an opportunity to be together as families.”

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The History of Hospice

Hospice is a concept of palliative care based on pain management and meeting the physical and emotional needs of terminally ill patients that originated in the United Kingdom. Most people believe hospice is a place, but patients can technically receive hospice care at home, as long as they are determined to be within six months of the end of their life.

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The hospice movement in the United States began in the 1960s. Dey, who graduated from Wayne State University’s nursing program in 1962, said hospice has been a positive development in medicine, and that she always knew that one day, she would be a part of one.

“Everything is taken care of here–it’s such a wonderful place, and a compassionate place,” she said. “It shows that death does not have to be frightening.”

Dey added that the openness in a hospice environment is also positive for patients.

“Even pets can come visit,” she said. “Sometimes I’ll see a little dog curled up by a patient–and that’s as it should be, because they’re family. I know I would want to see my cat, if I were here.”

There’s also a kitchen so families can make a traditional meal without leaving the facility.

“I walked into the kitchen one day and saw a family member make crab cakes, and the family sat down at the table and had dinner,” she said. “It was just like home.”

”Everything is taken care of in hospice care–it’s such a wonderful place, and a compassionate place. It shows that death does not have to be frightening."

At the hospice, Dey said, "You get to know the people, which is something I wish I could have done more at the hospital."

Hospice Thrives on Volunteerism

Dey's activities include taking care of clerical tasks and organizing an ice cream social for families and patients. But much of her time is spent talking with family members and patients, doing small favors like painting nails, listening to stories–sometime for hours, and holding hands.

“People often need someone to listen to them," she said. "They need to know that someone cares."

Dey also helps organize the annual "Tree of Life" event at Laurel Park Place mall in Livonia. The event allows family to place an angel ornament bearing their name of a deceased loved one on a holiday tree. She said the tree provides comfort to those who've lost a loved one.

Angela Hospice serves about 1,500 patients per year, with the assistance of about 400 volunteers like Dey. The hospice is a non-profit operated by the Felician Sisters of Livonia.

Kathy Ostroskie, the volunteer coordinator for the hospice, said Dey is one of the organization’s most dedicated helpers.

"For the past four years ... Susan Dey has shared her wonderful gift of listening coupled with a cheerful demeanor with our patients and their families,” she said. “She, along with other volunteers, give of their time to provide the community with an opportunity to honor and remember loved ones during the holiday season.”

When Dey’s not at the hospice, she spends time with her three children and five grandchildren.

She doesn’t see an end to her volunteerism any time soon. Dey knows that what seems second nature to her is quite extraordinary to others, because comforting those at the end of their lives is a task unlike any other.

“People sometimes ask me, ‘How can you do this?’” she said. “But I tell them, ‘How can I not?’”

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