Though retired now, early due to a disability, I was a nurse for over 20 years. I've worked in a number of specialties but the one I worked in the most was home health, not to be confused with private duty nursing. Home health is strictly a hospital on wheels. Anyway, that doesn't really matter. I also worked with Alzheimer patients, a seriously high number of them, I did Obstetrics and GYN, I worked for a ENT and also a plastic surgeon. Though sad that I cannot work as a nurse any longer, I did have a well rounded career.
All that said, the one thing I enjoyed more than anything was home health. As a working mother, it was much more flexible than any other nursing job. I could stop at the bank, take my child to the doctor, or whatever and still see my patients later on. As convenient as that is, it is not the reason I loved home health. I loved home health for the conversations I had with the patients.
Most home health patients are on Medicare, so their ages are over whatever the age limit is for Medicare. Most too were usually being seen because they were discharged from the hospital such as follow up appointments. Again, that's most of them, not all.
In any case early in my career, WWII vets were rampant. Sadly, towards the end of my career there were few left. I loved listening to the stories that my patients would share with me. Their stories of the war, the farm, the depression and so on. I could sit there all day listening to any of them. Some bragged of the war and some were more reserved.
Anyway great stories have been out there but now memories are becoming lost, as that generation, sadly, passes into their next life.
Then, on a day like today, you read something like this. This woman, I'm sure, has stories to tell as well. I hope that her son documents her memories. He must move fast because they will be lost in the blink of an eye.
God bless her.
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