Donnell House observes 20 years of hospice care
Courtesy of the Concordia Hospice of Washington Donnell House.
The Concordia Hospice of Washington Donnell House is in its 20th year of operation.
Courtesy of the Concordia Hospice of Washington Donnell House
Jessica Phillips is a licensed practical nurse at the Concordia Hospice of Washington Donnell House, which is in its 20th year of operation.
Courtesy of the Concordia Hospice of Washington Donnell House.
Jessica Phillips, licensed practical nurse, makes up a bed in one of the eight rooms at the Concordia Hospice of Washington Donnell House.
For 20 years, those in need of hospice care, as well as their families, have received compassion and understanding at the Concordia Hospice of Washington Donnell House.
Residents receive quality end-of-life care, as well as inpatient and respite care.
“Our goal is to make sure that our hospice patients are completely comfortable no matter what stage in their journey they are in,” said Mena Louies, executive director Concordia Hospice of Washington.
The Donnell House opened in January 2002. Philanthropists Richard and Shana Donnell had a personal experience with hospice in Ohio, where Shana’s father received inpatient care at a similar facility. They wanted to bring a similar level of care to Southwestern Pennsylvania. They donated $1 million to the Washington Hospital to help see the endeavor come to fruition and the community raised an additional $2.2 million.
Now, it’s the only inpatient hospice of its kind in Washington County.
Its roots sprouted from Washington Hospital, which was rebranded as Washington Health System in 2013. On July 1, 2016, Washington Health System partnered with Concordia Community Support Services to create Concordia Hospice of Washington.
Currently, Concordia Hospice of Washington employs 43 people, with about 20 team members dedicated solely to the care provided in the Donnell House. Some have been with the facility at 10 Leet St. in Washington since it opened.
The Donnell House contains eight patient rooms that open on to private patios. There’s also a community room, great room, sunroom, quiet rooms, a chapel and a children’s play area.
Five staff members have been with Donnell House since its inception: Cheryl Killen, registered nurse; Missy Yevins, registered nurse and compliance and education specialist; Jamie Garber, a certified nursing assistant for 19 years who became a licensed practical nurse in November, as well as two who currently serve in casual roles, Judi Grover, registered nurse, and Kathleen Scattaregia, team assistant.
“It’s hard to believe it’s been 20 years,” Killen admitted. “I’ve always enjoyed working here. I’ve enjoyed getting to know the patients and the families over the past 20 years. It’s very rewarding just knowing that you helped someone be more comfortable in their dying hours.”
That is a very important facet of the work done at Donnell House – providing comfort for the families of the patient, as well as the patient.
“We cry with the patients, we cry with the families,” Yevins said. “To shed a tear makes the families feel that these people taking care of my family really cared.”
Having compassion is an integral part of the job, because hospice work is not for everyone.
“A hospice employee who works in this type of unit has to have a completely different skill set, the biggest being the heart,” Louies said. “We want someone that has compassion that’s overflowing.”
Garber said she was 25 when she began working in hospice care. For her, there is no more rewarding form of nursing.
“I feel like you get the closest connection and you give the last gift these people receive on earth – dignity and respect, love and compassion – before they transition,” she said. “There’s no greater pain than losing someone, but you have the ability to lessen this pain for that family. I don’t find anything more rewarding than that.”
Of course, during two decades in the hospice business there are patients with whom they became attached.
Garber said she still talks to family members of patients who were at Donnell House 15 years ago. Killen added that she’ll be recognized when she’s at a store or somewhere by someone whose family member was a patient.
One patient to whom they became quite attached was a 12-year-old boy.
“That was probably the most difficult time,” Yevins recalled. “I was listening to check this little boy’s heartbeat. I just kept praying I would hear it and I didn’t. His mother was inconsolable. I didn’t have the words that I have for other people to help her. Jamie and I just stayed with her and hugged her and cried. I tell everybody that particular day took a piece out of my heart.”
Louies said nothing significant has been planned to mark the two decades of operation yet, but there will be something to commemorate the anniversary by the end of the year.
“It’s humbling, just because of how much this building and this organization has meant to the surrounding community,” he said. “Most people that you run into have some sort of connection to this building. They had an aunt, grandma, grandpa, someone they know who has passed through the Donnell House. It’s humbling to know it has served the community for 20 years and is still going strong.”