Stillness in Motion

Last night I saw the excellent movie The Savages starring Laura Linney and Philip Seymore Hoffman.  The theme of the film is how these adult children handle  care for their father who has dementia and physical debilitation.  The dynamics of this family were portrayed with intensity and sensitivity.  There was a realness to this movie: the stunned reactions of the “children” who are wrestling with trying to do the right thing for their father; the process of finding a care facility for him; the portrayal of the staff in the facility.   But the thing that really moved me was how no one touched the father as he clearly grieved for his losses and struggled to make sense of his new world.  I kept thinking “if I were there, I would at least reach out and take his hand.”  But nobody did.  Then I realized that this family’s history and old wounds simply got in the way of reaching out and touching him.  I could have touched him with  compassion and an open heart because I didn’t have the baggage of the past.  And through my presence and my touch, his family could have offered him love.  For me, that is the essence of my work.
Be Well,
Ann

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 Hi All,

Lola’s comments reflect the question that many massage therapists ask: “How can I get paid for providing services to hospice or elders who reside in nursing homes?”  This is an important question and the answer is multi-faceted.  Over the years I have met many massage therapists who generously volunteer their services to care for individuals in hospice care.  I’ve even had some therapist say to me ” This is such sacred work, I don’t feel right charging for it.” 

I think the decision to provide our services as volunteers is a highly personal decision.  I do some hospice volunteer work myself.  For me, it is a way to give something back- a gesture of gratitude.  That said, I’d like to offer this for you to ponder.  The service we provide as massage therapists has value, no matter what the setting and we should be asking to be compensated for what we do.  That includes nursing facilities, hospitals, home care and hospice settings.  We offer those we touch a profoundly healing experience that requires our professional skills.  So the question still stands- how can I get paid? 

I am seeing massage therapists around the country being paid by hospice groups, by nursing facilities and by  families of elders who are in facility care.  Things are shifting in our favor.  Here are three situations I know of, representing three different funding resources.

1. A nursing facility in pays a massage therapist an hourly rate for up to 12 hours per month to provide massage for the elders there.  The administrator sees the value added to her facility by offering this innovative complementary service.  The money comes from the marketing budget because it is attractive to her potential customers.

2. A hospice pays for massage sessions for their patients by using money from a fund that was created for added services.  The money for the fund comes from donations.

3. Elders in a facility who recieve state medicaid money each month may use some of the monthly “personal needs” money for massage.

What are you seeing regarding this issue?  How do you feel about it?  How might we be agents of change? I would love to hear from you. Let’s talk!

Be Well,
Ann

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In a November issue of USA Today (11/13/07) there was an article about retired Justice Sandra Day O-Conner’s husband, John.  John has Alzheimer’s disease and lives in a Phoenix care facility.  The article focused on the fact that John found a new love in the facility- a woman who also has Alzheimer’s.  Mrs. O’Conner’s reaction to this development was one of relief and gladness that her husband had found a bit of happiness in the midst of  suffering from dementia.
I recently saw the 2007 movie Away From Her starring Julie Chistie who beautifully portrays a woman with Alzhiemer’s disease and she, too, finds a satisfying relationship with a man in the faciltiy where she resides.  Her husband in the film responds with bittersweet understanding and compassion for his wife.
I wonder how common this occurs in couple’s struggling with the challenges of this disease. 
In the USA article, Peter Reed, senior director of the Alzhiemer’s Association is reported as saying that “ the underlying causes of this are fairly common.  Though paitients lose their cognitive abilities and experience mood changes, one of the things that doesn’t go away is the need for relationships”.  It would seem that this part of our humanity remains intact no matter what life may throw our way.
What do you think?

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