PMH offers Respite Care

A Respite Care program is one of the many services offered by Pocahontas Memorial Hospital.

Respite Care provides short-term relief for caregivers who need time away from their responsibilities for various reasons. Caregivers include not only sons and daughters, but also parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents and extended family and friends. PMH’s Respite Care program gives caregivers peace of mind in knowing that their loved ones are receiving personalized and dedicated care while they are away.

Respite Care is available to anyone – whether or not it is medically necessary for them to be in the hospital. If bed space is available, PMH will accept any individual into the program. Respite Care is a private-pay program and not billable to insurance.

Providing full-time care for an ill or disabled family member can be exhausting and overwhelming. Sometimes caregivers just need a break – and there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, Respite Care has been shown to sustain better health and mental wellness for caregivers. It can be easy for caregivers to get “burned out.” Respite allows caregivers the opportunity to rest, take care of personal matters, travel and, occasionally, to be relieved of the constant need to care for a person with a disability or chronic illness.

PMH has a dedicated and compassionate staff ready to carry out a comprehensive plan of care for each individual patient. Contact Edwina Garber, Case Manager, at 304-799-1081 for more information about this program.

Ready for the next storm

A large delivery was made to Pocahontas Memorial Hospital earlier this fall in the form of an 8,500 pound generator.

This new generator will power the kitchen, hospital chiller, and the radiology lab in the event of a power outage. These areas of the hospital were not previously wired to a generator, therefore they were not available during outages. Wendell Wilfong, the dedicated Director of Maintenance at PMH, spent several weeks this fall both preparing for and installing the new generator. It is a much needed and highly anticipated piece of equipment and will ensure that patients continue to receive top-notch quality care if and when the power is out.