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Personal Care For The Whole Person

January 8th, 2010

Perhaps the fastest growing industry in Tyler is the medical industry. A drive through town on any given day seems to reveal a new medical center of one kind or another. East Texans have a plethora of choices for all stages of life and health care. Since 2003 they have been choosing Legacy hospice to care for themselves and their loved ones as they approach the close of their lives. Legacy is committed to providing answers and options to patients and families approaching this final stage of life.

Legacy is a small but growing, family run hospice that provides for both the physical and emotional needs which accompany the dying process. There are several varying degrees of care which depend upon the patient’s health. The degrees run from “Routine,” or at home care, to “Inpatient” around the clock care. Every form of counseling from dietary to spiritual is available. Doctors and nurses provide many different forms of therapy for the patient. The Hospice also couples with local nursing homes to help provide care to dying patients.

When it comes to emotional needs, the Chaplains offer council and support both to patients and their families. Bereavement care can be offered to a family for up to a year after the passing of a loved one. The Chaplain staff visits patients and loved ones in their homes or in the hospital, does regular check ups by phone or e-mail, and even helps with funeral and memorial services.

Legacy Hospice is fully covered by Medicaid and Medicare, as well as most other forms of insurance, and serves a large area of North East Texas.

Serving your family at every stage of life

October 31st, 2009

Well here we were the day before Halloween and I had yet to decide on a topic on which to write that coincides with the season, but along came Walmart. Now I realize the retail giant gets a lot of undeserved criticism, but in this regard I find the critics to be constructive. The store announced that they will now be selling caskets and urns on its website. I believe in capitalism, the open market, and making a buck. I also believe in saving a buck as a consumer, but this is an example of a product whose price I am fairly indifferent about.

I confess that I’m not sure why this story bothers me so much. I just find it strangely depressing that the last purchase of my life would be made at the same place I buy diapers, food and everything in between. I guess it’s kind of a circle of life thing. I’m starting to feel like just another resource for the department store to tap. If a product called Soylent Green appears on the shelves, here’s a hint, don’t eat it! It tastes just like people. I think death and mourning is probably not a good product for whole sale retailers. Buying urns in bulk, or dropping off and picking up your dead at the drive through window could prove just a little dehumanizing. I can hear it already, “Will the Hague family please report to isle five for your father’s wake.”

In all seriousness, I understand that fraud and scams in the funeral services are very real mine fields for grieving families to navigate. Largely for this reason, my own father sees it as perfectly acceptable for the department store to offer the on-line products. By the way, the caskets actually have product names like; “the executive,” (almost sounds like something one might prefer to test drive prior to purchasing), and “Mom and Dad remembered.” There’s nothing like a little manufactured sympathy. It comes down to this, I just don’t want to be considering end of life options while in the middle of it. And Dad, I don’t care what you say; I’m not burying you in a Walmart casket!

Instead of turning to a department store in preparation for the life to come, I suggest simply planning ahead. Find a funeral home and director you know to be honest, and make your wishes known to your family not your local Walmart. As I finish this piece I am reminded that I need to head to Walmart for more Halloween candy. Hey! Maybe I should pick up an urn to put it in!

To see the on line listings follow the links below.

Walmart Caskets

Walmart Caskets link 2 

Atria Assisted Living

August 31st, 2009

[ad#Wall and Madison]

Atria assisted living is something different in senior care. Their purpose is to offer independence, community, care and companionship to area seniors. The staff of Atria Tyler is top notch and provides round the clock care to the aging. The maintenance department offers assistance for any technical issue no matter how small at any time of the day or night.

The facility offers several levels of care. Independent living is for those who desire to live an active lifestyle in a close knit community of individuals at a similar stage of life. The staff is there to offer assistance with things like laundry, transportation and social events. There is also a cafeteria style restaurant and a twenty four hour café. Assisted living offers a higher level of care to those who require it. In addition to the services provided to independent residents, assisted residents enjoy help with dressing, bathing and medication. Memory care provides continual care for those experiencing memory loss and disorientation. Atria also offers short term visitations for those who would like to investigate the option.

The activities the community offers go toward developing and sustaining the whole person. They include arts and crafts, board and card games, bingo, book clubs, gardening clubs and many many other opportunities. Atria residents are also invited to form their own groups around any activities not currently available. According to their literature Atria offers over two hundred different social opportunities for residents per month.  Again, the goal is to provide a rich full life in the company of other senior adults at a similar stage of life.

Atria is not a nursing home or a hospice center for the elderly, it is a community that provides for the medical and practical needs of seniors while they enjoy the comforts and convenience of a close knit familial environment. In everything Atria does for its families it strives for excellence and dignity. From the foods served to medicine it practices, the residents come first. And the results are evident in the testimonies of the people who live there.
 
The company is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky and has facilities in twenty seven states including Texas. For more information see their website at www.atriaseniorliving.com, or call their Tyler office at (903)509-9575.