Gavin's Miracle

Can you imagine suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, sleep apnea, obesity, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder? The perseverance and courage to work through and recover from such a heavy load of problems is beyond admirable. “I’m a miracle!” exclaimed Gavin Herbst, who just celebrated his 43^rd birthday, as he shared his testimonial of the journey he’s travelled over the past two years. “I came to Alliance about two years ago because I had major issues and no insurance. My wife is a teacher and we can’t afford a policy for me. I’m a full time student at Wake Tech in the Criminal Justice program. I had no resources to take care of myself,” started Gavin. He needed comprehensive care - regular check ups, a disease management plan, a weight loss plan and mental health services. “I was extremely obese. I had a variety of conditions. I used an inhaler on a regular basis. I was a heavy smoker. I didn’t eat healthy. After a mental health crisis, I ended up in Holly Hill Hospital. Upon discharge, Wake County Rural Health referred me to Alliance.”

Once Gavin became a patient of Dr. Watson at Alliance, he started to make gradual improvement. “I kept making him promises. He’s certainly an awesome doctor. I was able to begin changing because of him, and I’m so thankful for him.” Some of Dr. Watson’s instructions were to develop an exercise routine. Gavin was keeping his promise on March 13^th, 2012, when he was working out at the Y with a friend. He suffered a pulmonary embolism not long after they began. In the time before the ambulance arrived, his heart stopped beating. His companion performed CPR while a small group of people formed and began praying. “I truly believe they saved my life,” Gavin declared. During the ambulance ride, Gavin flatlined SIX TIMES. “On the last time, I saw Jesus Christ and he spoke to me. He said: ‘Blessed be you who sees with his eyes for there are many before you that wish that they could see what you see now. Blessed be he who sees not with his eyes but believes through faith for he will be greatly rewarded in Heaven. Why have you forsaken me?’ Then he took my hand and he put it in his side where the Romans had stabbed him. He continued, ‘I’ve come to give you life, not by my will, but by the will of my Father who has sent me to you that you may have life and may have it abundantly. Go back and forsake me no more.’ I saw beautiful lights in colors I’d never even seen before and felt this amazing, powerful healing come over me. I was saved.”

After he was admitted into ICU, the doctors gave Gavin a 10% chance of survival. They called his wife to stay by his side, giving him no more than 3 days to live. But Gavin pulled through. “He kept me here for a reason. God has a bigger plan for me!” After suffering a seizure, being diagnosed with pneumonia and having experienced six cardiac arrests, he defied all the odds. He stayed in the hospital for 48 days before his release, and committed to the instruction he had received in the ambulance.

“I was 320 lbs at the time. Now I weigh 258 lbs. I’m on a diet of 1500-2000 calories per day and a max of 1500 g of sodium. I’ve stopped smoking altogether. I can run 2.5 miles. I’ve become a Christian. I’ve made sacrifices for my new lifestyle. It’s not always easy. Sometimes I’m tempted to pick up a cigarette or eat fried chicken, but I’m not prepared to go back down that road. I’ve made such remarkable progress. I can’t turn back,” Gavin declared.

“Alliance has been absolutely fantastic for my recovery!” Gavin receives guidance and support, can get his medications, is held accountable, and is educated on his health and lifestyle choices. He loves and appreciates his providers, giving big hugs to Dr. Jackie Hicks and Robin Schroeder, RN, as he shared his story. “Robin has been there through a lot of this. She’s one of my heros!” he exclaimed. “You’re one of our heros!” Robin replied. He is invested in his health and has truly become such a success, even asking Dr. Hicks health-related questions when he stopped in for our visit. “If you don’t follow the doctor’s instructions, you’re wasting their time and yours. Your health is one of the greatest assets you can have! That and your love for Him.” His outlook change and his strict attitude towards making the necessary changes to become healthy have truly propelled him. “I’ve learned to never give up. Life is precious. You really don’t realize how quickly it can be taken away. We have to take full use of all the things we have, both physically and spiritually.” We are so pleased that Gavin is doing just that. He's kept up a 3.7 GPA and is a member of two different honor societies. His goals are to remain an active member at Journey Church, continue improving his health and help kids by becoming a juvenile parole officer once he finishes school. We are absolutely honored to be a part of his amazing journey by helping him transfer his health!

Ash Wednesday Homily

During our Ash Wednesday service yesterday, our Chaplain Intern, Robert Flowers, delivered the following homily. Thank you, Robert, for sharing this with us!

A Reflection on Psalm 51:1-17

Prayer: O God of my salvation, deliver me so that my tongue will sing aloud of your deliverance. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. Amen

It’s painful for patients to come to Alliance and share their aches, pains, and struggles with strangers. If you’ve ever been sick, you know how difficult it is to be around other people. We can’t talk about our illnesses. It’s too embarrassing. No one wants to hear about our excruciating pain, our unbearable suffering, or our “dark night[s]” of the soul. When we get sick, we want to hide it and pretend like all is fine. What ends up happening is we burden ourselves with shame, embarrassment, secrecy, guilt, and insecurity.

The patients who visit our Green, Blue, and Purple Pods bring with them loads of shame, secrets, guilt, and insecurity. Maybe it’s the diabetic patient who hasn’t been eating rightly or exercising. Or perhaps it’s the patient who knows he needs to kick his smoking habit, but he just can’t. Maybe its the woman who feels hopeless because of a debilitating illness, broken marriage, and lack of money. These patients walk in and out of our office daily hiding their struggles, but hoping that they might find a listening ear, a caring smile, or simply someone who cares.

That’s our role here. We are caregivers, but we could also think of ourselves as confession partners. People who are in utter pain and despair come to us and share their struggles. Sometimes we help by prescribing medicine, offering counsel, providing resources, or referring them to specialists. But these are only band-aids; temporary fixes. 

In reality, we have very little control over when, how, and where our bodies get sick. Illness can come to anyone at any time and at any age. It might come as a sudden pain, a strange lump, a routine checkup, or a vague sense that something is not quite right. The unexpected diagnosis of a serious illness brings with it shock, surprise and a confrontation with the fact that we are all going to die. Indeed, illness is much more than a medical event. It is often nothing short of a life passage and the beginning of a new journey.^[1]

We who work at Alliance are confession partners on the same journey as our patients. We, with finite bodies and limited knowledge and abilities, join our patients in trying to cope with the fear and frustration that come with being inside bodies that are breaking down.    

In today’s Psalm, we hear the confession of a fellow traveller, someone on this journey just like us. This person is on his knees in utter despair, in a body that is breaking down. The first words we hear are a cry for mercy. “Have mercy on me, wash me from my iniquity,” the Psalmist pleads to God. This cry for mercy can only come from someone who is struggling, from someone who knows his or her own brokenness. When we recognize what is broken in our hearts, the only thing we can do is to cry out for mercy.

Crying out for mercy is never easy. We can’t stand to admit those things that break our hearts and leave us feeling desperate, powerless, and dependent on something beyond our control. What would happen, we worry, if others knew of our struggles, knew of our doubts, knew of our fears, knew about our illnesses, or knew about our addictions? What would happen if people saw me for who I really am?

Our Psalmist reminds us that we come to remember and confess our deepest struggles because we know they don’t fall on deaf ears. Today is Ash Wednesday, when we come to receive the mark of the cross on our foreheads. This mark reminds us that we’re not alone in our afflictions and suffering. God has appealed to us in the dirty, messy, and crucified human body of Jesus Christ.  We confess our struggles, knowing that the Word made flesh has heard our cries and has the power to purge us and renew within us a right spirit.

This is why we begin Lent with Ash Wednesday. Lent prepares us for the Cross and the celebration of Easter Sunday, that day when God through Jesus renews us and gives us new life. We learn to know and receive God’s merciful gift of new life as we plead and confess alongside the Psalmist. With broken and contrite hearts, we come before God crying out for mercy. Today on Ash Wednesday, let us remember and confess what makes us broken and finite human beings. In doing so, we can begin our journey toward the mercy and new life that God gives us on Easter Sunday. In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.            

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^[1] See James L. Brooks, The Unbroken Circle: A Toolkit for Congregations Around Illness, End of Life and Grief (Durham, NC: Duke Institute on Care at the End of Life, 2009), 35.   

Snip, Snip, Give! Do Your Part!

Do Your Part for Charity

Blo 24-Hour Cut-A-Thon to Benefit Alliance Medical Ministry

 

RALEIGH, N.C. – Hair stylists at Blo will work in shifts over 24 hours on Sunday, February 10 to raise money for Alliance Medical Ministry at the sixth annual “SNIP, SNIP, GIVE 24-Hour Cut-A-Thon.” For a donation of $40, the award-winning Blo design team will provide haircuts to the public, beginning Sunday at 8 a.m. through Monday at 8 a.m. One hundred percent of money raised from haircuts, retail and raffle sales will go to Alliance Medical Ministry, a local non-profit dedicated to providing affordable medical care to low resource working adults in our area.

The Blo staff selected Alliance Medical Ministry as this year’s 24-Hour Cut-A-Thon beneficiary because the organization provides an affordable primary medical care home for hard-working adults who do not have healthcare insurance.

According to Alliance, more than 150,000 adult residents of Wake County lack access to affordable primary medical care. Also, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 79% of the uninsured in North Carolina reside in a working household.

“We were stunned to learn these facts and are inspired by Alliance Medical Ministry’s vision to offer compassionate and affordable medical care to those who need it most,” said Bryan Nunes, Blo owner. “We’re ready to do our part and believe the community will come out in full force to support Alliance.”

Appointments can be booked by calling: (919) 484-8600. Walk-ins are also welcome at any time, day or night.

The 24-Hour Cut-A-Thon continues to grow each year at Blo, which was recognized as the “Salon of the Year” nationally last year by Salon Today magazine. Participants come from as far away as Virginia for the high-energy event, which has raised more than $60,000.

During the event, prizes will be raffled off all day. The grand prize winner will receive free haircuts for a year. Guests also receive discounts on all Redken and Pureology hair care products, styling tools and accessories.

• WHAT:  Blo 24-Hour Cut-A-Thon to benefit Alliance Medical Ministry
• WHEN:  8 a.m., Sunday, Feb. 10 until 8 a.m., Monday, Feb. 11, 2013
• WHERE:  Blo, 8451 Brier Creek Parkway in Raleigh
• COST:  $40 minimum donation
• APPOINTMENTS:  (919) 484-8600

Located in Raleigh, N.C., Blo is home to the 2011 Salon of the Year nationally, according to Salon Today magazine. Blo offers guests a metropolitan salon experience featuring an award-winning space and a hairstyling team of unmatched unity and professionalism, including the state’s most highly trained Redken Certified Stylists.  The salon was recently recognized as a finalist in the Professional Beauty Association’s prestigious North American Hairstyling Awards, and ELLE named Blo among the “Top 100 Salons” nationally. Blo also garners kudos for its commitment to continuing education and community service. Visit us online: http://www.justblo.com and converse with us at our sassy weblog http://www.justblo.me.

Alliance Medical Ministry is a non-profit organization whose mission is to serve working uninsured adults of Wake County in need of affordable medical care. Alliance offers a primary care home to nearly 10,000 patients, of which 98% have an income below federal poverty guidelines.  In 2013, Alliance celebrates its 10^th anniversary of providing comprehensive onsite services that now include: chronic and acute medical care, health education, lab testing, pharmacy and physician referrals for specialty care.  All services are bilingual.  The medical clinic is located at 101 Donald Ross Drive in Raleigh.

Making REAL Changes

In a recent Alliance newsletter, we introduced to a patient named Tony.  He is a compassionate, gentle man whose life dramatically changed while serving 15 years in prison. Following the deaths of his two sisters, it was there that he vowed to God to change his life.  His journey to change has continued following his incarceration due to YOUR past support of Alliance. “Your mind has to be made up that you are gonna change when you come out of prison.  If not, you won’t really change.  So I started working in the chaplain’s office.  I studied the Bible.  I helped a fellow inmate named Michael who had Down syndrome.  I made real changes.”

The one thing Tony could not change while in prison was his health.  “I learned that I had diabetes in prison.  The doctor told me to watch my diet but that was hard with all of the rice and pasta they serve you. It keeps you alive, but it doesn’t help if you have diabetes.  They put me on insulin and I started to gain a lot of weight.  My leg swelled, and I was miserable.”

Five years ago Tony was released and lived in a halfway house. He worked hard to get his life back on track.  But then his sugar went up to 105, and he was forced to turn to the emergency room. Tony no longer had access to providers and insulin to manage his diabetes, and he could not afford to get healthcare on his own. Like many other new Alliance patients, Tony was referred to us when he left the hospital.

Once again Tony has been given a second chance to make real changes, this time for his health.  “I am taking medicine.  Now I exercise 5 times a week!  I don’t feel as sluggish and can do more at work.  I am so grateful for my care at Alliance!  I feel as though I can never repay my doctor, nurses, Alliance staff and YOU for the real concern that has been shown for me.  Being a patient at Alliance gives me the motivation to push more and keep doing what I am doing.”

“Now I help deliver and install cabinets.  I get to take care of my mother.  I also have a medical facility that cares about me and helps mestick to my goals and the changes I have made.  I just wish I could do more to support the ministry at Alliance.”  The benefits Tony has received far exceeds the investment our community has made.  We know other patients feel the same way!

Thank you so much for the investment you have made in Alliance and patients like Tony!  Your support allows Tony and other patients to receive quality, continuous medical care, medicine, health education and support through counseling – all under one roof – in a compassionate and caring environment.

We want Tony and others to be engaged citizens and neighbors.  In this season of anticipation and hope, we are asking you to make an investmentin Alliance.  We are asking you to help others make a real change for better health like Tony.  The work of Alliance improves our overall community, but without your support this work is not possible.  Wehope we can count on your continued support!

Abbey's Toy Drive

Abbey Finn, a student at Cleveland Middle School, held a wildly successful toy drive in her school and community this holiday season! After seeing her mother, Sonya Finn, head up a food drive at Thanksgiving, she had the idea to plan a toy drive. She wanted to give Christmas to kids who may not be able to have it this year. With her mother’s help, she discovered that she would be able to help at Alliance. It is not uncommon for our patients to face the fear that they may not be able to give their children much, if anything at all, during the holidays. Driven by inspiration from her mother’s good example and a passion to help, Abbey set to work.

 

Cleveland Middle had assigned a community service project to the students. Abbey couldn’t wait to present her idea! But it was passed up by several teachers, as they were focusing their projects around environmental issues. Determined to collect toys for Alliance patients’ children, Abbey continued her search for a teacher liaison. Finally, she connected with Mrs. Gross, sixth grade science teacher. She was on board! Abbey and her two friends, Hannah and Alexis, planned and presented their project with Mrs. Gross’ support to principal, Mr. Byrd. Once approved, they made posters and signs to put up in their school, spread the word through their friends and classmates, and went door to door in their neighborhood to recruit participants.

 

After all their hard work, Abbey stopped by Alliance a week before Christmas with a truck load full of toys, clothes and candy! She even collected a few special toys, including a brand new IPod! Filled with excitement, she shared her story with Alliance staff members as she toured the facility. Joi, Director of Pastoral Care and Counseling, shared with Abbey and Sonya that their work would be helping the grandchildren of a gentleman who visits Alliance for his primary care. Recently suffering some financial setbacks, the man had shared that he would not be able to give anything to his grandkids this year at Christmastime. Thanks to Abbey, her teachers, friends and community, this man is one of many patients who will be able to show their love to the children in their family and see the smiles on their faces Christmas morning! Great work, Abbey. You are so very appreciated!

 

Just Keep Going!

A high-spirited, sweet young woman. A WakeMed Rehabilitation Center volunteer. A gracious patient who aspires to become a CNA. Meet Jamie Worrells, uninsured Wake County resident. In March of 2011, Jamie was referred to Alliance following her treatment at Duke Raleigh Hospital for H1N1 and double pneumonia. After getting hit so hard with illness, she absolutely needed to find a medical home.

"I had always been overweight, from the time I was little, and learned to just accept it. I'd never been seriously ill and I'd only had to use urgent care a handful of times to address my health," Jamie explained. "But after having H1N1, I couldn't just jump back up and go full speed ahead."

Jamie hadn't been feeling well, but the dedicated employee still went in for her shift at the bowling alley. Once she arrived and began working, she could barely breathe. She knew she had to get help and asked to leave to see a doctor. Fortunate that she didn't wait any longer, her oxygen level was at 20% when she reached the urgent care! She was admitted to Duke Raleigh from there and held for treatment for several days.

"Alliance has helped me to change my attitude. Exercise and a healthy lifestyle aren't just something I HAVE to do, but something I WANT to do. People tell me I'm courageous, but I just take it one day at a time... I'm still a work in progress!" Jamie laughed. Before getting sick, Jamie cared for her grandmother. That's when she discovered her ambition to go back to school to become a CNA. Her visits at Alliance have been further inspiration. "The doctors really care. You're not just a number. I'm just so thankful for their support and encouragement. So, I'm doing the things I need to do to get back to where I can work and go to school to help people. I just have to trust in the Lord and keep going!" Jamie exclaimed hopefully.

"Give back and show them that you care," says patient of Alliance to community members

     "In my family, there's always some sort of sickness. Cancer took my dad, grandfather and aunt, all of whom had high blood pressure, and my mom also had high blood pressure along with diabetes," shared Judith. Judith is a woman who loves and takes care of her family. When her husband had a stroke, she nursed him back to health. One of her children is incarcerated and Judith continues to love and offer support to him as much as possible. She cares with such devotion for others, but when asked how she had previously cared for her own self when she got ill, Judith replied, "I would deal with sickness on my own. I would rather have not gone to the emergency room, but if it got really bad, I would go." It is known that emergency room visits can rack up a huge bill for any patient, much less one without insurance. "It was ok, going to the ER," added Judith, "but it is a big, big bill."

     Before she lost the insurance she held through a prior job, Judith was being seen for a stomach ulcer and anemia. For years this went untreated - until she found Alliance. Five years ago, a friend of Judith's introduced her to Alliance, describing it as an organization where people just like her, honest workers who unfortunately are not provided with insurance, can have a medical home. "Alliance is the best thing that could have happened to me. They treat you really nice here," she remarked. Judith was experiencing a severe pain in her knee for years before being examined by Dr. Watson, her doctor at Alliance. Dr. Watson ordered an MRI for her knee, which eventually led to a hip replacement. As it turns out, her knee was not the root of her pain at all. "I would probably still be hurting if I never became a patient here at Alliance," explained Judith. "Alliance helps tremendously." She appreciates the honesty of her doctor, saying, "He tells me what's what and gets straight to the point. If he needs to, he even gives me a call to let me know what's going on." She also appreciates the warmth from the Alliance staff, "The nurses and everyone, really - they are always so nice!"

     Judith revealed that she feels so blessed to have been able to find a place like Alliance to help her when she needed it. If she could tell others out there one thing about Alliance, it'd be to "give back and show them that you care about what they do here. I don't have time myself, but I wish I had time to volunteer at Alliance. They've always been good to me. I want to do good for them return."