At Emerson Hospital’s Compassionate Caregiver Award event held recently, two staff members were honored for their devotion to patients and for consistently providing compassionate care. Nominated by their colleagues, Gach Clamp, Home Health Aid with Emerson Home Care, and Kathy Loftin, Pre Visit Associate in the Patient Registration department, were chosen by their colleagues to receive Emerson's highest honor for patient care.
Gach’s role as a Home Health Aid is to assist patients with activities of daily living and provide basic care to patients who are recovering from illnesses or surgeries in their own homes. In addition, she changes dressings, and performs other health care functions that enable patients to recover. Gach’s colleagues describe her as a Home Health Aid they would want to have for any of their family members. Her dedication to patients is, “remarkable.” She is, "thorough beyond compare.” “She leaves patients not just squeaky clean, but with a smile as well.” “She treats her patients as one of her own.” “Patients always want her back, she brings sunshine into their lives.”
A resident of Concord, Gach has been at Emerson since 1995.
"I am humbled to receive this award," said Gach Clamp. "Put simply, I treat patients the way I would want to be treated. I thoroughly enjoy working on the Emerson Home Care team. It is a privilege to help people return to good health. We are all devoted to our patients and focus on giving them the best medical care in the most compassionate ways."
Kathy’s role as a Pre Visit Associate is to contact patients before they have a medical procedure or a surgery performed at Emerson. She provides them with information about their visit, helps coordinate insurance, and answers all questions patients and their family members have. For many people, she is the first contact they have with Emerson. Kathy’s colleagues describe her as, “always expressing empathy and kindness to patients.” “A week doesn’t go by without patients commenting on how kind Kathy was on the phone.” “Kathy is on the front lines of a family’s Emerson experience. She is sight unseen talking with patients by phone, yet she makes such a difference in people’s lives.”
A resident of Groton, Kathy has been at Emerson since 2006.
“I am honored to receive this award,” explains Kathy Loftin. “I am grateful to make a difference in the lives of many people who need care and help remove some of the anxiety that comes with having medical procedures performed. Our patients are some of the most inspiring people I have ever met and I do everything I can to help them have a positive experience at Emerson."
“Gach and Kathy are very special people who exemplify the true meaning of providing compassionate care to patients,” said Dr. Gregory Martin, Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President for Clinical Affairs at Emerson Hospital. “They both put patients at the center of what they do each day. We are honored to have them as members of the team.”
Emerson Hospital's annual Compassionate Caregiver Award was established in 2004 and recognizes compassionate care as exemplified by the late Terry Croteau, a social worker at Emerson who made an exceptional difference in the lives of her patients and co-workers. All hospital employees, medical staff and volunteers involved in caring for patients and their families are eligible to receive the coveted award.
The concept for the award grew out of Emerson’s involvement in the Boston-based The Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare. The Terry Croteau Compassionate Caregiver Award is sponsored by Emerson’s Schwartz Rounds Committee, which recognizes and supports those who provide exceptional patient care in their daily practice, and the Berry Supporting Foundation. Jon Dubois, MD, Mass General Cancer Center at Emerson Hospital - Bethke and chair of the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Care Rounds at Emerson, presented the awards to the recipients. Members of the Emerson community, family members of the award winners, and patients were in the audience.
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