Every quarter we honor outstanding staff members for their contributions to our mission. Each of our disciplines is recognized as part of our Bouquet of Recognition. Among our most recent recipients

Carnation award

Jamie Doughman, Hospice House Unit Clerk

Jamie was nominated by a colleague for her role in a moving reunion of husband and wife.

The hospice patient came to the Hospice House directly from a rehab center. He cried and wept off and on for several days as his wife could not bring herself to overcome her fear of leaving their home.

The couple have been married 60+ years. The wife is Japanese and has a slight language barrier, walks with a cane and is usually wheelchair bound. She is 89 years old and has an extreme fear of leaving the house. Due to her agoraphobia, she had not seen her husband for over three months while he was in the hospital and in rehab before coming to Ohio’s Hospice of Dayton.  Staff called the wife to make her aware of her husband’s decline. She was very upset and asked that we place the phone close to Charles ear so he could hear her. As she cried and proclaimed her love for him, Jamie offered to find a way to go and get her even if she had to take her lunch and go herself. With the help of the volunteer department, Jamie and a volunteer visited the home to help escort the wife to the Hospice House. When Jamie and Bob arrived at the house they offered the encouragement needed for the wife to face her fear. When the patient, who had been previously unresponsive and actively dying, learned his wife was on her way, he opened his eyes. When she arrived, her visit coincided with a veteran pinning ceremony honoring the husband for his service. The couple were able to reunite and spend precious time together before the husband’s passing.

Pictured above, Jamie left with Brittney Thiel, Hospice House Team Leader, right