Melissa Soldridge
September 2018
Melissa
Soldridge
,
RN
Outpatient Hospice
Lehigh Valley Hospital
Allentown
,
PA
United States

 

 

 

From Melissa's first visit, we knew that she was special. She came into my parent's living room, knelt down in front of my dad and talked about what she was going to do in order to take care of him. I could tell that Dad was at ease knowing that Melissa was going to do whatever he wanted to keep him comfortable in his own home. Melissa took the time each visit to talk with both my dad and mom (who has dementia). Melissa always commented to Mom how nice she looked making my mom feel comfortable with another woman caring for my dad. My brother passed away recently and I called Melissa and asked her to be at our home when we had to tell Dad that his son was gone. We were concerned about what the news would do to Dad. Melissa came and after some time she said she was going to leave to give our family time to be together. I told this to Dad and he replied to Melissa, "Don't leave. You are like family." He truly meant this and loved her. Less than three weeks later, Dad passed away. Melissa was at the house minutes after he passed and again, her kindness and caring were present for my family. Our family was blessed to have our father cared for by Melissa. She made Dad's wishes to be taken care of at home a reality and treated him with kindness and dignity and for that, we are so grateful!