Gloria Willis and her father Jim enjoying a day together.
Looking back on her father, Jim’s, last year of life, Gloria Willis is thankful that she knew what to expect and what to do.
When she received the call from her sister in Elko, Nevada, that their father’s Alzheimer’s disease had started to progress she understood what it meant. “He needed a higher level of care,” Gloria says. “It was time for him to be with me in Portland.”
As a social service provider, she knew that the first step would be to find him the right place to live for the level of care he needed, close by her home so she could visit often. She already knew that the second step was to get him signed up with Housecall Providers Primary Care. She explains, “I’ve seen over and over how convenient it is for folks to have the doctor come to them, especially for those who have challenges getting out of the house.”
Even with her background and having seen how well Housecall Providers patients are supported, when it came to her father receiving care it felt much more personal. She recalls Jim’s primary care provider, Barb Sutton, putting her father at ease and helping him stay positive.
Remembering her father, Gloria describes a quiet and gentle man, a postal worker for more than 30 years and a music lover who introduced her to Ray Charles for which she is forever grateful. Reflecting on small things with big impacts, she notes that he also taught her to play cribbage which has turned out to be a valuable life skill. Her fondness and love for her father is reflected in all the stories she tells.
In April of 2023, his provider, Barb Sutton, met with Gloria and recommended hospice care. Having watched her father’s decline, Gloria was prepared for the recommendation but notes that Barb made the conversation easier. “She was just very respectful and answered all of my questions like the difference between palliative care and hospice care, what the next steps will be, who will be on the care team and things like that.”
Jim’s time receiving hospice care was filled with love from his daughters and Gloria appreciates this as something beautiful. She is grateful she was able to be with her father through his illness and that his care home and Housecall Providers Primary Care and Hospice always kept him comfortable.
Gloria joins a long list of family members and caregivers who are thankful for Housecall Providers steady and compassionate support through difficult transitions. In Gloria’s case, though, she went from being an advocate to an ambassador. “When you go through it yourself, it just makes it so much more real. Housecall Providers is an essential piece of our community.”
