ST. LOUIS - Mercy Hospice was awarded several honors at the annual Missouri Hospice & Palliative Care Association Heart of Hospice ceremony. Of seven award categories, Mercy caregivers were honored in three.
Sandi Jett, a volunteer for Mercy Hospice in Washington, Missouri, won the Administrative Volunteer category. Jett stepped up during a time of transition for the program. She helped organize the volunteer schedule, various projects and delegate tasks. Her knowledge of all things kept the vital volunteer services going. She continues to support the hospice team and organize all administrative tasks that need to be completed.
The nomination said, in part, “Without Sandi, we don’t know how we would have been able to keep up with the volunteer program. She was truly a life saver just when we needed one.”
Mercy Hospice’s Pet Peace of Mind program won in the Program category. Thanks to the work of Nancy Preheim, Mercy Hospice became an offical Pet Peace of Mind program in 2019. It’s the only national program providing a care model for pets of seriously ill patients. Funded entirely through donations and grants, Preheim helps the Mercy Hospice team identify forever homes and assists with all the practical pet owner needs.
The program is able to help keep pets at home with their family during an illness providing comfort and support for patients. Since its start, Mercy Hospice’s Pet Peace of Mind program has helped 149 dogs, 120 cats, two ferrets and 149 hospice patients.
The nomination read, in part, “Nancy is the driving force behind Mercy Hospice’s Pet Peace of Mind program. It is because of her the program has grown and has become an established component of our hospice program. Our program was the first to start in St. Louis and we remain one of the only hospice programs in St. Louis to offer this level of support to our patients' fur-children.”
Last, but definitely not least, the Heart of Hospice Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Mercy Hospice Director Helen Cassidy. Cassidy has worked in hospice for more than 20 years and served in her current role for most of those. During her time at Mercy, she earned a bachelor’s and master’s in nursing, inspired by Florence Nightingale. She has made significant operational improvements and spends time educating providers about the need to admit patients into hospice sooner. She is relentless in her efforts to ensure all patients have goals of care conversations prior to needing hospice services so, when the time comes, the patient and family can make well-educated decisions about their options.
Cassidy serves on many local and state hospice organization boards including the Greater St. Louis Hospice Organization and the Missouri Hospice & Palliative Care Association. In addition, she has been nominated for and achieved several awards throughout her hospice career.
The nomination read, in part, “Helen’s skills and achievements are too numerous and impressive to list them all. She continues to be an influence to me with her humility, honesty and passion to provide exceptional hospice care and services throughout her community and state. I strongly endorse Helen’s nomination for the Lifetime Achievement award and believe that her contributions to the Mercy organization, her community and state make her the best candidate for the award.”
