Through generous donor support, major renovations to this unique inpatient hospice unit help provide better palliative care and assistance.
Some may wonder how people can work in hospice care, where patients are at the end of their lives due to terminal disease or illness. But if you ask Melody Roedts, BSN, RN, CHPN, the clinical manager of hospice at The Gatehouse, an inpatient unit that is part of UPMC Home Healthcare of Central Pennsylvania, she would tell you that her job is incredibly meaningful and important. She takes great pride in what she and her Family Hospice teammates do every day.
“We help people through the process of dying so that they have comfort, dignity, and kindness. We support their families and caregivers as well,” says Melody. “There is a real purpose to what we do.”
About The Gatehouse
Situated on the UPMC Williamsport Divine Providence Campus, The Gatehouse is a peaceful, comforting place for short-term respite and relief for patients seeking end-of-life support and their families. This seven-bed inpatient hospice unit provides skilled medical and nursing care for the management of pain and other symptoms that cannot be managed safely or effectively in a home hospice setting or nursing facility. This can include symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, respiratory distress, seizures, and severe agitation.
“Our unit focuses on palliative care and relief so that, ideally, the patients can go back home,” says Melody. While the goal is to improve symptoms so patients can return to where they were previously hospicing, sometimes they pass during their stay at The Gatehouse. “We are ready to handle those instances, if they should occur.”
Whenever beds are available, The Gatehouse can also offer some patients respite stays. “These can last up to five days and help support family caregivers by giving them a little bit of a retreat or break,” says Melody. When there is availability for a respite stay, the staff at The Gatehouse helps plan the visit to meet the patient’s individual needs.
By providing a peaceful, home-like environment, The Gatehouse helps make an incredibly difficult time for patients and their loved ones a little bit easier. Families can spend quality time with patients in private bedroom suites, a comfortable family room, a kitchen, and a meditation room — all while patients receive around-the-clock, skilled nursing care to manage their difficult symptoms.
Over the last two decades, this vital inpatient center has served as a tranquil, private, and dignified space for hospice care. As the years went by, however, it became clear to the staff and others that The Gatehouse was due for a thoughtful, thorough, and much-needed makeover.
Major Renovations Have an Immediate Impact
Over the past two years, The Gatehouse facility was completely refreshed — from new furniture and décor to new playroom toys and an expansion of the existing Tree of Remembrance. Melody watched the facility be transformed, and the rejuvenated unit has been a real benefit for patients, their families, and The Gatehouse staff. There is a more home-like atmosphere now. Comforting details, such as warm colors, soothing artwork, and decorative pillows, can be found throughout the various rooms.
In addition to basic repairs and upgrades within the facility, the renovations included:
• Fully refurbished patient rooms with new beds, furniture, paint, and décor
• A remodeled kitchen families can now gather in to share meals
• Improved and modernized nursing stations
• A refurbished playroom with new toys for kids and families
• New information boards in the hallways
• A staff break area and lockers
• A new family laundry area
• Spruced-up common areas for gathering
• An expanded Tree of Remembrance
“I love all the renovations, but the kids’ play area has to be my favorite,” says Melody. “It has a space-themed mural on the wall and lots to do. It’s a happy space that everyone really enjoys having here, and a place where kids can just be kids.”
The Tree of Remembrance Continues to Grow and Inspire
Including the Tree of Remembrance expansion in the renovations was important, because this artwork has been a meaningful part of the facility since The Gatehouse opened almost 20 years ago. By donating a leaf in the memory of their loved one, families and friends have a way to honor those who have passed while helping support others who will need The Gatehouse in the future.
Donations Keep The Gatehouse Open
Although The Gatehouse provides an important service, its expenses are greater than the income it generates. Thanks to generous contributions, the recent renovation project was completely donor-funded, keeping costs down for the community it serves.
“Next on our wish list is the replacement of our older CADD pain-medication pumps,” says Melody. CADD is short for “computerized ambulatory delivery device,” which is used in hospice care to deliver medication for pain management. This can be done continuously or on demand, either subcutaneously or intravenously. A CADD pump can enable patients to manage their pain more autonomously, and it can be used in a hospital or at home.
The hope is to have the new CADD pumps partly or fully funded by donations through the Susquehanna Health Foundation. “The Foundation has been really supportive and amazing, and they reach out several times a year to ask us what The Gatehouse needs,” says Melody. “They truly understand what it is that we do in family hospice, and they have incredible compassion for our patients and their families.”
Donations are critical to keeping The Gatehouse open and available to the entire community,” says Sherry Watts, President of the Susquehanna Health Foundation. “In fact, we utilize up to $100,000 annually to help cover the unreimbursed expenses that keep The Gatehouse running, because it is such a vital service to the UPMC in North Central Pa. community.”
Sherry is always inspired by how donors continue to financially support the work of The Gatehouse. She is also inspired by the staff and volunteers. “The patients and families The Gatehouse serves every day have found so much comfort, support, and peace here. It’s hard to put into words just how much that means to those in hospice.”
How to Contact The Gatehouse
For more information about The Gatehouse call 570-320-7690.
How to Support The Gatehouse
You can make a meaningful difference for patients and families at The Gatehouse. To contribute, give online.