Nine members of the Our Lady of Peace (OLP) staff presented at this year’s Minnesota Network of Hospice & Palliative Care (MNHPC) conference. The Power of Gathering was an appropriate theme for the event, given it was the first-time members have gathered in person since Covid. Those who attended continue to process the bountiful takeaways, knowing that new ideas will provide fuel for the advancement of care for our patients and their families.
Members of our knowledgeable and dedicated staff were invited to speak on multiple topics
at the conference. Lindsey Pelletier, RN, OLP’s performance improvement coordinator was invited onto the MNHPC Board of Directors in January. Along with colleagues Lyn Liberman, BCC, and Janie Sydor, RN, Lindsey, she presented on Professional Caregiver Grief. She sheds some light on why the presentation was important for caregivers and the people we serve. “When a loved one dies, grief is a normal and universal response. The same is true for caregivers when a patient dies. We need to know how to cope with patient loss, so we can prevent accumulative fatigue and burn out.” The team shared strategies for supporting yourself through the losses, including lighting a candle of remembrance when a patient passes, before moving on to your next patient visit.
Our Lady of Peace views MNHPC as the leader on hospice and palliative care in Minnesota, and we share the organization’s mission of increasing awareness of end-of-life care. They are a resource for us in and outside of conference classrooms, and members of our staff who wanted to attend the conference, were given the time to do it, at no cost to them. Lindsey says, “OLP takes care of our staff, so we can fill our cups and take the best care of our patients.”
Lindsey’s biggest takeaway from the conference is learning to take time to step back, pause and realize the importance of this work. OLP social worker, Nikki Hauf, MSW said she realized that amid the heaviness that comes with end-of-life work, people are also experiencing beauty and humor amid the grief. “I was impressed by a presentation that offered the concept of using TikTok to honor a person’s life, instead of written words within an obituary”.
Rabbi Lynn Liberman, a part time OLP chaplain said, “The real work of a conference happened in the hallway with people collaborating. There is power in knowing that everyone present understands the nature of this work and the highs and lows of it.”
Thank you to all who attended the conference, with the overall goal of making Our Lady of Peace hospice care the best it can be.