By Brenda Himelfarb Palisadian-Post Contributor It’s one thing to volunteer to work in an emergency room. It’s another, however, to work in an emergency room and, on occasion, assist your child, who is an emergency room physician. Yet, that’s exactly what Palisadian Silgia Grassl has done as an Angel of the ER at Saint John Hospital’s Emergency Department. Grassl had been in the Angel program for two years, when her daughter, Sabrina Grassl-Diaz, who grew up in the Palisades, began working at St. John’s, after interning in the emergency room at County/USC. ‘Needless to say, it’s very special. I just try not be in the way,’ admits Grassl, with a smile. More than 30 adult volunteers, 13 of them Palisadians, are part of the Angels of the ER, a program that was created by Carla Hummer, an RN who worked at Saint John’s for 25 years. From wrapping a patient in a blanket or merely holding a hand, Angels are there to comfort and calm all those who enter St. John’s emergency room. ‘I give patients verbal first aid,’ Hummer once said. ‘I tell them, ‘You’re in the right place. We’re only here to make you feel better.’ Most important, the Angels are a vital link in the communications chain between the patient and their families and the ER staff. The Angels also allow the ER physicians and nurses to spend more time doing what is most needed’providing patents with the best possible medical care available.’ The idea for the Angels came about because Hummer was disturbed that patients had to sit and wait so long in the emergency room. She voiced her concerns to Russ Kino, director of the hospital’s emergency department, who approached the hospital’s Irene Dunne Guild, which raises funds and organizes volunteers for the hospital. Soon Hummer was organizing the Angels in the ER. ‘The Angels assistance has greatly improved patients’ relationships with the medical staff, because they are there to listen and answer questions, allowing physicians and nurses to focus on treating patients as quickly as possible,’ Kino says. Ranging in age from 19 to 65, the Angels undergo extensive training that includes an eight-hour orientation, followed by 25 hours in the emergency room. After completing their training the volunteers spend the first six months on the job with an experienced partner, under the supervision of an ER physician, an RN and a physician’s assistant. For the duration of their volunteer work, they also attend monthly meetings at the hospital. ‘It’s very rigorous training and we have been extremely selective with our recruitment of Angels because it takes a very special person to handle the enormous responsibilities involved,’ says Ann Harter, who currently runs the program. ‘The ER is extremely busy and can be very stressful for someone who isn’t prepared to cope with crisis situations.’ Palisadians Hummer and Harter were the first Angels. But soon the word spread, and the group continues to grow. ‘ Recently the Palisadian-Post invited other Angels who live in the community to share their feelings about the work they do in the St. John’s emergency room. ‘I have been an Angel for about four years,’ says Teddi Tindall, who has recruited some Angels through her job at the Nest Egg on Sunset. ‘I feel, other than caring for my husband, that it is the most important thing I do in my week. It embarrasses me when the patients express their appreciation, because the work is so personally gratifying and gives me so much spirituality. I should be thanking them.’ On one frantic day, a mental patient was experiencing extreme emotional highs and lows. ‘One minute he was crying, the next he was all smiles,’ Tindall recalls. ‘When he was put in a public area he became agitated and disruptive to the people around him. In talking with him, I discovered he loved to dance. I asked him to dance and we spent a lovely few minutes waltzing, which soothed him and created a bond between us.’ Lou Andrews, a retired Marine, has been an Angel for a year. ‘My job as an Angel encompasses two functions: one oriented toward the patients and the other toward the ER staff,’ he says. ‘In a phrase, for the patients I make ‘nice.’ The patient is typically anxious, discomfited and depressed. It is simply heartwarming to see the effect of walking to a gurney, placing a hand on an arm, smiling and asking, ‘Are you warm enough?’ The ER staff is dreadfully overworked and I do whatever I can to help. I make beds, empty urinals, clean, run errands, deliver and retrieve food trays, transport patients in wheelchairs and most importantly, am of good cheer. I feel that I am truly part of the ER staff team’a team in the finest sense of that word. I can think of nothing I have done in recent years that has given me a greater feeling of worth.’ ‘ Mary Ann Weiss became interested in becoming a volunteer because of the compassion and medical skills of the staff during her stay as a patient. ‘I wanted to show my gratitude in some way. Each time I help in the ER, I have such a good feeling, as I know that I have helped some people through a difficult time.’ Melinda Casey has been volunteering for over two years. ‘The interaction with the staff and people who come in for help is a life experience,’ she says. ‘Each shift is a new experience. People come in afraid and confused. But before long we make them comfortable and at ease and let them know that everything is being done for their proper care’whether it’s giving blankets, getting juice, being a liaison between the nurse and patient or simple letting family members know what is going on. ‘One time a chef, who had cut off his finger and had saved it in a bag of ice so it could be sewn back on, came in to the ER. Although he had done the right thing, it was hard to believe. We cared for him and he is back to work in the kitchen.’ Helen Cranmer, a Palisades piano teacher, says that as she enters the ER for her shift, she leaves her own life behind and totally devotes herself to trying to comfort and ease away concern of both the patient and the family. ‘The magically medicinal affect of a smile and reassuring words disarm the fear of a patient. I love to give away smiles, hope and optimism. Humor works well, also.’ Mary Martin, who has four sons, has been an Angel for over two years. ‘Having been a stay-at-home mom, I found that I had a skill that I didn’t know I had’that of being a cool, calm caregiver when the boys got hurt. Needless to say, we made several trips to the ER over the years. ‘The thing I find myself wondering is how the story comes out for everyone. How did the heart operation come out? But we are only involved for an hour or two in the process. People come in and the Angels get to know them a little. It’s not like television where you find out the ending. This job brings reality to my life and reminds me that every day is a gift.’ Grassl says that many elderly people come in, often alone. ‘It’s nice to be able to make a phone call for them or to even just hold hands. For me, these simple things are very rewarding.’ Ann Harter felt the helpfulness of the Angels first-hand when her son was admitted with a serious lung problem. ‘It was an Angel who gave me a hug and provided comfort and assurance, which allowed the ER staff to care for our son. It was an Angel who inquired as to our needs and brought a comfortable chair to our son’s bedside. For an anxious mother, these acts of kindness were very much appreciated. The ER team cared for us in a time of crisis and our Angel was a part of that team.’ With all the chaos in our world, it’s good to be reminded that there are a lot of good people doing good things’many of them your neighbors. And they make a difference every day in the lives of people who, in most cases, they have never met before and probably will never see again.
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