Siloam Health - November 2020 Newsletter

NOVEMBER NEWSLETTER | 2020

Making A Way

Forging a Path Forward Each patient encounter at Siloam Health is sacred.

Though patient care is not all of what we do, it is the essence. It’s the central place where we live out our mission to share the love of Christ by serving those in need through health care.

Siloam to adopt “Make a Way” as one of our new Core Values. Through it, we commit to listen, learn, and forge an affordable path forward that addresses the social and cultural context of each patient, no matter what it takes.

That may sound rosy, but the truth is that most encounters at Siloam begin in chaos. Common themes for patients include: bewildering symptoms; a sense of being overwhelmed by life; and hopelessness after many false starts at finding relief. It’s a picture of disordered, anti-shalom, where each patient — fighting physical, financial, social, and cultural challenges — is lost in a proverbial wilderness.

And we’re in good company. God has been making a way since the beginning. In the first verses of Genesis, His Spirit brings form and fullness into chaos and barrenness, enlisting His image bearers as sub-creators in His ongoing work. And when His chosen people later lose their way, literally and spiritually, He responds: “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:19)

At Siloam, we ask ourselves daily: what does it mean to forge a path forward for our patients?

It means that we start by listening and learning from each individual patient’s symptoms, bringing form to the chaos through a thoughtful series of interviews, tests, and follow-up visits. It means that collaboration is key — from everyone including staff, volunteers, and students. It means that we must often look past “perfect” answers and one-size-fitsall solutions in order to discern next steps for care out of the chaotic fragments of a patient’s story.

It’s a call to creativity amidst constraints — health ministry as a form of “improv.” And it’s what led

In the following pages, I hope you’ll see a small glimpse of this core value — Make a Way — made real through the example of an amazing patient and volunteer. As you can see, we don’t forge these paths alone. Way-making is a collective effort, and your donations, prayers, and partnership are an equally vital part of that.

Thank you!

Morgan Wills, MD President & CEO

Making a Way for 5,000 Hours: Celebrating Dennis Caffrey If you’ve visited Siloam Health any time over the past nine years, there’s a good chance you’ve met Dennis Caffrey. A volunteer Spanish interpreter since 2011, Dennis has made a way for thousands of patients. On October 13, he hit a milestone rarely achieved by volunteers: Dennis has contributed 5,000 hours of individual volunteer service to Siloam Health!

Three times a week, Dennis drives from his Murfreesboro home to serve at Siloam where he interprets for patient visits, trains new volunteer interpreters, and regales staff members with stories from his time in the United States Air Force.

In fact, he says there’s an adage from the military that speaks directly to Siloam’s dedication to “make a way” for those we serve.

“If you find something blocked, make a way. Create an opening.”

It’s a sentiment Dennis has carried over to his service at Siloam. Every day, he makes a way for patients, not just so they can communicate with their doctors, but so they can be truly seen, heard, and understood.

“Interpreting is much more than just being able to hear something in one language and then render the equivalent in another,” Dennis says.

“You have to have empathy for patients; you have to understand the cultural context on both sides.

It’s like when you were a kid, and you created a telephone out of tin cans and string — interpreters are the string between the two cans.”

Dennis training another volunteer interpreter in 2017.

One person who especially understands the importance of the “string” is Siloam’s Behavioral Health Specialist, Rebecca Swift. She says Dennis is vital in helping her connect with Spanish-speaking patients on an emotional and mental level.

“Dennis helps me understand the words behind the words of my patients,” Rebecca says. “My patients have learned to trust him, and he helps create an environment where they are comfortable opening up about their suffering and pain...and sharing their joys and hopes.”

For Dennis, this environment of trust and teamwork is why he keeps coming back. As he bridges language and cultural gaps, patients more fully benefit from the “noticeably different degree of care” he says Siloam provides.

“There’s a personal connection made at Siloam, a level of attention that isn’t the case in many other medical settings. There’s a big belief that no matter what a patient’s situation is, something can always be done to help. We can always make a way.”

Making a Way through COVID-19: Olga’s Story

“The love that Siloam provides for people stands out to me in the attention they give to every single patient.”

Making a Way through COVID-19: Olga’s Story “I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t even walk the steps to get into the clinic. I was very afraid because this virus…it’s not something to play around with. It’s not a game. It’s something you hear about killing many people, and it’s crazy to be faced with life and death like that.”

Olga has been a patient at Siloam Health since 2015. As someone who deals with both liver and thyroid issues, her care has expanded over the years to include specialists at other health care facilities. But Olga says that the care she receives at Siloam is different. The patient relations team always knows her by name. Her nurse, Perla, always greets her with a smile (even from behind a mask!). And her provider, Emilie, always takes time to sit with her after her physical exam to talk about other things in life that may be impacting her overall well-being.

“When I come here, I know that I will almost always see the same doctor, and that she will take the time to listen to how I am doing — not just how I feel in my body, but how I feel emotionally and spiritually,” Olga explains. “I find comfort and peace in the consistency of my care here.”

It was that consistency of care that brought Olga to Siloam when she was suffering from complications related to COVID-19. After she and her grandson tested positive for COVID-19, her entire family made the decision to quarantine at home. But after a few days, Olga’s condition got worse. She had a fever and chills, and she could barely walk without losing her breath due to dangerously low oxygen levels.

When she arrived at Siloam, Olga was put on oxygen, but it was only a few minutes before her provider called an ambulance to take her to the Vanderbilt emergency department.

“I was afraid, and my granddaughter looked afraid too,” Olga recalls. “There were so many doctors and nurses around me helping as I was getting transferred onto the ambulance. I don’t even remember how many. But I know that at least one doctor sat back with my granddaughter and told her not to be afraid. That I wouldn’t be going alone because God was going with me. She prayed for me and for my granddaughter. And I felt peace.”

Olga says it was this prayer — and the knowledge that so many at Siloam were with her in spirit — that gave her comfort and strength in her fight against COVID. “The whole ride to the hospital, and even while I was there, those words stayed in my head — that God was going with me. I just kept praying, ‘God, I know you’ll make a way to heal me.’ And because of His grace, He did.”

Olga recovered from COVID-19, as well as subsequent pneumonia and respiratory failure, after six days in the hospital. She returned to Siloam for a follow-up visit and was met, not just with celebration for her recovery, but with a pathway forward towards lasting health. Her providers at Siloam are continuing to monitor her health, and thanks to our partnership with Vanderbilt University Medical Center, she has begun seeing a specialist for her liver disease. Today, she feels stronger, healthier, and more hopeful than ever before.

“The love that Siloam provides for people stands out to me in the attention they give to every single patient. Through Siloam, I know that God is with me and that He is making a way for me to feel cared for and loved.”