At the Bedside
When she’s not busily pottering in her garden or caring for her grandchildren, you can find Meredith Decrevel geared up with her hospital swipe card, ready for her ward rounds. But Meredith isn’t a nurse or a doctor – it’s the soul that Meredith seeks to soothe.
Meredith is one of South Coast District Hospital’s longest serving hospital chaplains – she’s been doing it for fourteen years. Whether it be holding a patient’s hand in their last days or having a heartfelt chat with someone on dialysis or undergoing chemotherapy, Meredith said her role is to walk in a patient’s shoes.
“When you’re sick, you can feel powerless,” Meredith said.
“Often people just want someone other than family to talk to, but the nursing staff are too busy. Time is something we do have and give willingly.”
Often people just want someone other than family to talk to, but the nursing staff are too busy. Time is something we do have and give willingly.”
While Meredith said not all the patients she spends time with are elderly or palliative, this is a large percentage of the people she helps. Meredith volunteers at the hospital one day a week and is joined by two other chaplains – Neil Pontifex and Kaye Hampel.
Kaye is still fairly new at the hospital – she’s been a chaplain there for less than two years – but to her, giving love and hope to patients is how the 71-year-old shares her faith.
“I remember I was doing an end-of-life visit one day,” Kaye said.
“The woman was unconscious and there was a whiteboard near her bed with her husband and children’s names on it – so I just talked to her using their names. And her breathing became calm.”
Kaye is living just across from the hospital and is able to be flexible with her visits. Sometimes she’ll go in for an hour or two, sometimes she’ll stay longer and see eight or nine patients.
“But it’s not a checklist for me,” Kaye said. “I want every encounter to be meaningful.”
Main Photo
Kaye Hampel