We had a patient this last week who spent a lot of time talking about her family and her life. She was growing closer to passing away and the closer she got she made it very clear that she wasn’t afraid of dying. What she was most afraid of was her family being left without her. She had spent so long taking care of them, she was worried that they wouldn’t be okay.

As her days drew to an end, she continued focusing on others rather than herself. On her last night on this Earth, she was blessed with Krista caring for her. Krista spends time with the patient and saw that the patient needed peace in knowing that her family would know how loved they were. Krista asked the patient if she wanted to make something for her husband of 68 years. The patient did. Krista went and got supplies that she had bought herself and came back to the room. She painted the patients’ hands and laid them in the center of a piece of paper with the hands making the shape of a heart. About halfway through this process the patient went unresponsive.

Family was called and as they gathered around the patient, Krista pulled out the paper and used the husband’s fingerprint to make a heart inside her hands as well as a flower with the patient's and her daughters’ fingerprints. This family was SO appreciative. I heard them three times pull the papers out and tell staff about how it was just like their mom or wife to spend her last moments awake making sure they knew how loved they were. They even told one staff member that they couldn’t wait to frame it and have it at her visitation and then hanging in their parent's house to always remember the love their mom had for their dad. Krista gave them an object that they will cherish forever. Patients often wait to pass until they had peace. I truly believe in those last moments with Krista, the patient found peace knowing her family would know how much she loved them.