The paramedic team of Graeme Cooper and Danielle Kellan work at the Queensland Ambulance Service’s Hervey Bay Station.
They were taking a terminal elderly woman out of palliative care to pass at her home with her husband of 50 years.
On the drive to her home, she had one small request. She told them that what she really wanted was a few moments looking at the ocean.
Said Graeme,"It was basically going to be her last journey back to her house where she was basically going to pass away. She was saying how she moved to Hervey Bay with her husband on the spur of the moment and they've been here ever since. She said she loved the esplanade and the beach and we said, ‘well, do you want us to take you down by the esplanade and pop you out of the truck and give you a look at the ocean.’
If you're sensitive to your surroundings and what's going on and you can seize a small window of opportunity, take it.”
“We popped her up on the hill where she could see the pier and Fraser Island and right through to Point Burrum and she was ecstatic with it all.” They wanted to take her all the way to the shoreline, but they couldn’t because it was to rocky. “I thought if all these rocks weren’t here I’d get down into my jocks and take you into the ocean...and I would have... however, I thought the next best thing was I can get some ocean and bring it to her,” So Graeme walked down to the water, where he collected a bag of sand and a cup of ocean water. He wet her lips with the water whilst Danielle put the sand in both her hands. She closed her eyes.
“She opened her eyes again and I asked how she was and she said 'it's time for me to go' and we loaded her back in the vehicle.”
Two weeks later, she was close to death, and wanting to spare her husband, and had the paramedics take her back to palliative care.
Graeme and Danielle took the call.
When she was in the rig, Danielle asked her, “How about that beach run again?' and she said, 'oh could we?' and we said 'absolutely'.
They both stood by her gurney for 45 minutes. She had her eyes closed much of the time with the sun on her face and the salt water in the air. It was a quiet time, with each person thinking their own thoughts. She mentioned to Danielle that all the moments from her life at the ocean were flashing in her mind and heart. When she was a young child playing in the sand. When she was a young woman with a beau strolling at the shore. When she was with her young children as a family on a day outing.
It was here that Danielle took the picture.
She asked her what she was thinking as she was watching the waves.
“I’m at peace. Everything is right.”
She passed away two days later.
Said Graeme, “In special cases where end of life stuff is going on, the contact we have is our last contact. We want to feel good about humans and people and the way they’re treated and managed so they get a good feeling. It’s always someone else’s father, mother, brother. If i lose my compassion i just won’t be in the job.
We’re very fortunate we’re in the role we do. If you’re sensitive to your surroundings, when a window of opportunity opens up, take it.
Sometimes it is not the drugs, training, skills.
Sometimes all you need is empathy to make a difference.”
As stated by one reader to the initial Queensland Ambulance Service’s post, “Dignity is one of the last things you can give to a person at the end of their life journey. This was dignity personified by the crew.
Thank you.”
Thank you.
