FINDING EMPATHY NIKKI COCKERHAM, TEAM COORDINATOR FOR COMPASSUS IN MCCOMB, MISS., KNOWS WHAT IT’S LIKE TO HAVE A LOVED ONE IN HOSPICE CARE.
TAKING CARE OF DAD
Right before his hospital stay, we had an open house at our new office location and my dad was able to come eat lunch with me.
When Nikki Cockerham’s father, James Prestridge, entered hospice care where she worked, she was able to truly understand the emotions and fears that Compassus patients and their families experience. Here is her story: When I joined Compassus in 2012, I knew that I achieved my goal of attaining a great job. But I never imagined that having this job would put me in a position to be there for my family when I was needed most, which in turn showed me how to better help our patients. My father’s health started failing in 2013, a few years after he had retired as a truck driver due to diabetic eye problems. While my mom and I worked, he would sit home in his recliner all day and watch television. He was a fairly large man, and eventually he couldn’t get up and down out of the chair much. His diabetes led to renal failure and he eventually had cataract
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surgery and stents put in his leg, so he wasn’t able to drive anymore. All my dad ever knew was work, so being unable to even tinker around the house made his illness worse. As his illness progressed, Dad was adamant that he would not go on dialysis, so he was put on hospice care. I never truly understood what families went through until I was put in that position. It was a struggle to watch a once strong and independent man depend on someone else. I would go just about every evening after work to help him and spend time with him. My mom told me that he would not be still or rest all day. It was not until I got there and sat beside the bed that he would sleep. I was his only child, his baby girl. I knew he would be better off when he passed, even though it was still hard on me when he did in April 2014. My daddy is in Heaven watching over me and I know I will see him again one day. Hospice was the best thing for him. He didn’t have to continue going to the doctor — his primary physician came to him — and he was able to die peacefully in his home with us around him. Had I not been employed with Compassus, I don’t know if I would have been able to be there with him. It was a blessing to help with his care plan. I now know the feelings that people have when they are faced with the decision of hospice. Now when I answer the phone, I know how to empathize with new patients and their families because I have been there, too.