Our History and His: Sean’s Journey with Alliance

“The first time I heard the vision of Alliance, I felt convicted in a good way,” shared Sean Harrison. It was one conversation, but the resulting impact has affected Sean’s life, his family and those without insurance in Wake County. In the beginning (2000), “it was exciting times. We felt an initial level of validation because the idea and plans for Alliance traveled quickly.” Originally, Alliance was going to be in the little yellow house behind First United Methodist Church in Cary. But then the important question was asked, where is the greatest need?

The location of Alliance, or at that point the “Faith-Based Medical Ministry,” was moved to a vacant lot behind Milner Memorial Presbyterian Church. The land was donated, plans for a new building were perfected and materials were being secured. Then the economy took a hit in 2001 following the dot.com burst and 9/11.

“Then it hit us, the mission was not about a building, but about serving,” shared Sean. Once again the vision of Alliance picked up momentum and on January 6, 2003, Alliance opened its doors and served its first patient in leased space on New Bern Avenue. Alliance grew quickly in patients and staffing. In 2008, Alliance moved into its current location on Donald Ross Drive, increasing its space by more than four times and allowing for ample growth opportunities over the coming years.

Then in 2009, Sean assumed the role of Executive Director when Dr. Susan Weaver moved to accept a leadership role at WakeMed Hospital. He had been a co-founder, Chairman of the Board, donor, and volunteer all while being a husband, father of three and starting two other businesses.

“I love the social entrepreneurialism of Alliance. The result of this venture is different than the other corporations I have started. The return is making people’s lives better,” shared Sean. Now he would have the opportunity to work with the nonprofit he helped to start on a daily basis. “There is a sense of satisfaction that has meaning and purpose that comes with working at Alliance. I never had that in a job before.”

Now looking back over the past four years serving as the Executive Director at Alliance, Sean has a pure sense of accomplishment and a deeper understanding of Alliance. Under his leadership we made the Acute Care Clinic a core service, planted a community garden, started the diabetes education program, formalized pastoral care and counseling, increased the technology of the clinic and partnered with Band Together to increase capacity.

Now Alliance is poised for it’s next evolution. “When I first shared with my family that I was stepping down as ED of Alliance, they were surprised. But when I shared that we would still be involved as volunteers, I would just not be working there everyday, they were fine.” Sean will always be a member of the Alliance Family!

Fear of cancer, but then comes hope...

When Carolyn was but 38 years old, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer and had a hysterectomy that luckily saved her life. Just a few years prior, she had given birth to her daughter, whom she raised alone because her ex-husband passed away from cancer. In addition, her father, sister and brother-in-law also passed away from cancer. It is no wonder, then that today, Carolyn is terrified of the possibility that she is next on cancer’s list. Cancer swept over her family, saving only her mother, who survived breast cancer twice, only to pass away in her sleep from a broken heart after losing her husband and daughter to this disease. As a self-employed worker who does not have insurance, Carolyn says her biggest fear used to be, “who is going to take care of me if I get sick? There’s so much sickness running in my family, and I am at a high risk for getting cancer again… it just scares me.” Carolyn admits that when she used to get sick, she wouldn’t do anything about it, simply because of her lack of options without insurance. She says that only when she got extremely sick would she go to an urgent care clinic to pay for services out of pocket. Almost 8 years ago, Carolyn was living on a limited income and raising her daughter when she started to realize that her heart was beating strangely. She was also uncharacteristically skinny, so she called social services, but they denied her and told her to contact Alliance Medical Ministry.

Carolyn found out, via diagnosis from Dr. Joyner, who has been her doctor the entire time she’s been a patient at Alliance, that she had a thyroid disease. “I probably would have had a heart attack,” says Carolyn, “or some other serious effects from the disease… or I could have even died if I had not found Alliance.” With all of the sickness in her family, Carolyn is terrified that some health issue will debilitate her. “It gives me peace of mind to know that I can get things checked out,” she says, “when I’m afraid that something is wrong with me, I can come here and they check it out for me.” Carolyn has been checked for diseases that run in her family, as well as others, such as diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. “Without this place to get checked out,” Carolyn states, “I would have been terrified that I would die.” In dealing with so much loss in her family, Carolyn began having anxiety attacks. “Dr. Joyner put me on a medicine to help with the anxiety and to cope with what was going on.” She also visited the pastoral care and counseling; “I wish I would have gone more. They were so helpful. The lady I talked with hit on things I hadn’t thought of. It was amazing.” Carolyn says that she wishes she had access to more preventative care when she was younger, advising to others that, “preventative care is important because it can help you to not get illnesses in the first place. Something can be brewing that you could get rid of, but if you don’t get the care in time, that could be it.” This is why Carolyn says Alliance is so important to her, “I really have a reason to care about this place,” she says, “because this place saves lives. I can only speak for myself, but it saved mine.”

Health problems keeping her down- how she found hope.

Imagine you had a job; you were working and supporting yourself, but debilitating health problems cost you your livlihood. Here is how one woman found a way to deal with her health issues: Six years ago, Bene had to quit her job working through temporary agencies because of her progressing health issues. She suffers from disc and knee problems that cause her too much pain to stand and endure the physical work typical of temporary agency assignments. With no health insurance and therefore limited options, Bene would go to the WakeMed emergency room just to get prescriptions filled. With the average emergency room visit costing over $1,000, and in addition to being out of work due to her medical issues, this was truly a hard way to take care of herself.

Bene was finally referred Alliance Medical Ministry, where she found hope, and started seeing Dr. Joyner. “The staff is very good,” she says, “They call to remind you of your appointments and if, for whatever reason, your doctor will not be there, they let you know. They also call to let you know when your medicine is ready.” Bene says that what she appreciates the most at Alliance is the genuine care she receives from every one of the staff members. She says that it, “is a blessing that I can go to Alliance and get the care I need and get my medicine for free.” Because of her constant disc and knee problems, Bene had to have two MRIs done, after which, she was referred for physical therapy, costing her only $20. When asked what Bene hoped would happen for Alliance, her reply was, “I really pray that people would sponsor Alliance or volunteer because they are doing a great job.”

Caring for the Caregiver

"If he can't take care of himself, he can't take care of me," explained Stanley's wife, Barbara. The struggle to provide and care for a disabled spouse became greater for Stanley as he developed his own health problems and didn't have the means to address them. Before finding Alliance, he was in and out of the emergency room with problems resulting from his diabetes. Holding a physically intense job as a landscaper and being responsible for another's health became next to impossible when his own condition got worse. Not only was Stanley having trouble managing his diabetes, he faced problems with heart disease and chronic joint pain. As overwhelming as that all may be, he knew he must keep on top of his work and fulfill his responsibility as caregiver to his wife, who also faces many health issues. Without health insurance, this was virtually impossible. Being uninformed and lacking access to care continued to deter Stanley’s path to recovery. That is, until he found Alliance. “I learned how much water I needed to drink. They showed me how to take my medications properly to manage my diabetes. And I still have so much to learn, but if I have a question, they will call me back. It’s priceless!” explained Stanley. What he appreciates most about Alliance, though, are the four stints he was able to get in his heart. “I’m so thankful for the donors. Alliance is an asset to our community and they make that possible,” he shared.

The impact we make on individuals’ lives and, in turn, on their families’ lives is invaluable. Thank you for helping us to achieve that!

Creating Community to Overcome the Challenges of Diabetes

“I’m trying so hard, so where am I going wrong,” shared one patient at July’s Group Diabetes Visit Pilot. Living with diabetes can be lonely and frustrating especially for patients of Alliance who do not have the same access to resources or support as those with insurance. More than a year ago, Dr. Tara Lewis, our medical director, and Diane Berry, RN, CANP, PhD, an Associate Professor at the UNC School of Nursing, started to develop a Group Visit Model that would work for Alliance and focus on our diabetic population who are high utilizers of primary care. The group visit is an extended doctor’s visit where not only physical and medical needs are met, but educational, social and psychological concerns can be dealt with effectively.  We are currently piloting this program with support from the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, lead funder, Duke University Health System Charitable Grants Committee and Novo Nordisk.

Patients normally spend 1.5 to 2 hours at Alliance for a typical diabetics visit.  With the group visit, patients spend the same amount of time at Alliance, but now get to participate in an educational component and interact with other patients.  At the first group visit conducted at Alliance, the most popular saying from the interaction was, “me too,” after hearing other patients comments and questions.

“It has been a joy watching patients open up to each other in ways that they can’t with our medical team,” shared Dr. Lewis.  “Participants are more receptive to the advice we share because it is then reinforced by other patients in the group.  The group setting allows participants to see their diabetes through a larger lens.”

Dr. Berry who has a back ground in conducting group visits in other settings said the group visits “is a powerful model because it’s inclusive of clinical and educational benefits.” Many patients have shared with Dr. Berry that they feel the group visit holds them more accountable as a patient because now they have an even larger caring group who wants to know how they are doing.

The overall goal of the pilot is to see if we can increase capacity through group visits as well as overall health outcomes.  Currently there are more than 50 participants in the pilot with a corresponding control group. Initial data won’t be ready until the end of the year, but the feedback from the participants has been overwhelmingly positive. “I can’t believe how much effort everyone has put into this program,” shared one patient.  Another patient commented, “I have lots of questions.  And each time I come, I learn something new.”

But the glory of the program has been celebrating the small success and the changes in lifestyle!

“I don’t even buy bacon anymore. It’s my favorite, but I have learned if it’s in the house I will eat it.”

“I have not eaten fried food in 3 months!”

“My A1c has dropped from last time!”

“For my husband’s birthday this year we went healthy. No more carbs and potatoes.  We had grilled veggies and salad.  The only thing leftover was the birthday cake!”

Christmas in July

A dark night was upon Linda Cheatham-Barnes and her family as the 2011 holiday season drew near.  Still mourning the loss of her younger sister, who had passed on just two months prior, Linda lost her home the week before Christmas after being overwhelmed by funeral expenses. Left with nowhere to go, she, her daughter and her four grandchildren found themselves living in a hotel. While they still had each other, this was far from the Christmas she and her daughter had dreamt of giving the kids.

Linda has been a patient of Dr. Lewis for almost three years now. She has asthma and suffered from bouts of bronchitis. She says, "I thank God that I am blessed to be able to go to Alliance. It is quality care. They have good people in there. Very professional, very nice. I get the medical attention I need, but most of all I get support." When asked what the best part of coming to Alliance is for her, she replied, "The best thing is to know that they've supported me through all the things I've been through, especially in the last year. It's a family. They ARE my family."

When Linda came in for a visit with Dr. Lewis during Christmas week, the receptionist noticed her anxiety over sharing her address change. Linda and her family were now residing in a hotel. The Alliance staff was immediately compelled to help. In a last-minute crisis, the staff was able to pull together money to help pay for temporary shelter, a gift basket full of food, grocery cards, and toys, games and stockings for the children. Linda's family was able to celebrate the holiday together with joy and gratitude in their hearts, even in their time of darkness. "I call Dr. Lewis and Joi (Director of Pastoral Care and Counseling) my angels. You don't get that anywhere else and it's a blessing," shared Linda. We hope to be able to provide more help, hope and blessings again this holiday season, with your support!

Please contact Joi today to discuss ways you can join us.

Spotlight of the Month!

Alliance is so grateful for the caring and dedicated work of Beverley Hester over the past 4 years. Beverly has been a member of the Alliance Medical Ministry family since June of 2008 and will be moving to Charlotte,North Carolina to be with her family. Beverly is a licensed clinical social worker who retired in 2006.  After a mission trip in Nicaragua in May of 2008 with her church, Pullen Memorial, Beverly discovered her passion for service.  It was then that she decided she wanted to continue to volunteer.  Beverly found out about Alliance from her primary caregiver and decided to dedicate her time to Alliance’s mission.

During Beverly’s 4 years at Alliance she assisted in the clinic helping the doctors and nurses by getting the patients from the waiting room and bringing them back to the clinic.  Among the other things that she did, such as getting basic information from the patients and helping to ensure that rotations ran smoothly, she truly enjoyed her interaction with the patients.  Learning their story, who they are, and making a connection with them in such a short period of time was a rewarding experience for her.  “Alliance truly does treat the whole person.  It has been a great pleasure to work here with the patients and staff,” says Beverly, “They believe in holistic health and provide it through passionate care as well as chaplain services.”

As much asBeverlywill miss Alliance, Alliance will miss her just a much.  “Beverly is such a great person to work with.  She really cares about the patients and loves being here.  We’re really going to miss her,” says LeAnne Ritter, an Alliance nurse.  Beverly plans to find a similar organization that she can volunteer her time towards when she moves.  “I have really enjoyed my time here and want to continue volunteering with a non-profit that has a similar mission asAlliance.”  No matter where she moves, Beverly will always be a member of the Alliance family.  “She is a loving person and it really shows through her interaction with the patients”, says Nurse Kim Conklin.  Beverly has truly been an asset to Alliance Medical Ministry and we are so grateful for her commitment to our mission over the past 4 years!