Independence Plus Blog
Making Friends with Documentation
Debra, RN, spends quite a bit of her time—inside and outside of the office—brainstorming ideas about how to make documentation relevant and engaging. Quality Assurance Manager for Independence Plus, Debra can be overheard saying, “If it wasn’t documented, it didn’t happen.”
A Blessing at 25 Weeks
When Kayla was six and half months pregnant, she was diagnosed with preeclampsia. A few days later, KJ was born premature at 25 weeks. After almost a year and half in the hospital, KJ finally came home in May. To the delight of his parents, KJ is happier than ever and growing rapidly.
Paul’s Make-A-Wish Trip to Disney
This guest blog post was written by Shania, BSN, RN, who has worked with Paul (age 8) for almost four years. Shania and two of our other nurses recently traveled with Paul and his family to help Paul experience Disney World through the Make-A-Wish Foundation®. This is the story of Paul’s wish told from the perspective of one of his very own nurses!
Zero Deficiencies in All Three Service Lines!
Last month, we welcomed CHAP (Community Health Accreditation Program) surveyors into our facilities and patient homes, and guess what they found? ZERO deficiencies in all three service lines!
13 Tips for Peaceful Coexistence between Parents and Home Nurses
This guest blog post was written by Lori Burke, a mother to two medically complex, technology-dependent children. Read her 13 tips for parents and nurses about how to coexist in an environment with skilled hourly home nursing.
Top 3 Qualities for New Graduate Nurses!
If you recently graduated as an RN or LPN from a college or university in Chicago, you have likely seen us. Read about the three qualities that make a difference in working with our medically complex, technology-dependent patients in their homes.
Travel Tips for Our Patients
Our ventilator-dependent patients are gearing up for summer by preparing for trips to Disney, outdoor concerts, parks and museums, and more. Traveling with our medically complex patients requires a lot of planning and preparation by the family and nurses, but car and air travel is possible!
A Simple Thank You Goes A Long Way
For Nurse’s Week last month, one of our patients created a “Home Nurse Survival Kit” for each of her nurses and her Clinical Manager. Creating the survival kit from scratch, our patient thoughtfully chose each small gift. She also included a personal thank you note for each of her nurses. Her kindness blew us away!
Paul’s Story: Living without Limits
Paul, age 8, is getting ready to take the trip of a lifetime! In two short weeks, Paul, his entire family (mom, dad, older brother and sister), as well as three of his nurses, are flying to Orlando to experience the wonderful world of Disney, thanks to the Make-a-Wish Foundation. This is Paulie’s story.
The Many Faces and Stories of People with Trachs
Why are tracheostomy tubes—or trachs—so often misunderstood and feared? Personal stories and photographs can go a long way with changing this negative perception. Read Madelyn, Maria, and Andrew’s stories to find out what they (or their parents) are doing to teach others about living with a trach.
4 ALS Advocacy Blogs to Read
May is ALS Awareness Month, which has left many people wondering how they can top last year’s Ice Bucket Challenge. Our suggestion: Let’s all become more educated about ALS, so we can become stronger and more passionate advocates for people living with this devastating disease. To get started, we identified four ALS advocacy blogs that we’re currently reading (and we think you should, too!):
Celebrating National Nurses Week 2015
This week, we’re celebrating our nurses! National Nurses Week is the perfect opportunity for all of us to recognize you, our RNs and LPNs, for your continuous commitment to serve and touch the lives of our medically complex, technology-dependent patients and their families.
Grow With Us
We’re expanding our services and offerings. We want you to be a part of the team that is delivering personalized, individual, people-focused skilled home healthcare to those in need. Come join us.