Nov. 4--Linda Drummy, a registered nurse and case manager with Hospice of the Wabash Valley, carefully and kindly took Howard Benthien's temperature, blood pressure and listened to his breathing Tuesday morning at a private home on Terre Haute's northeast side. She then asked Benthien whether he'd noticed any pain today.

"No pain," he said.

"You're looking good," Drummy told her patient while finishing her examination.

"Feeling good," Benthien said with a smile.

Howard Benthien, 83, was diagnosed with lung cancer two-and-a-half years ago. For the past two years he has needed a walker to get around and recently moved from his home in Milwaukee to stay with one of his daughters at her home in Terre Haute. Because of his illness, he could no longer fully take care of himself, he said.

November is National Home Care and Hospice Month -- a good opportunity to learn more about the services hospice workers provide. "I think a lot of people don't know what Hospice [of the Wabash Valley] does," Drummy said.

Benthien, a World War II veteran, was familiar with hospice services even before needing the services himself. About 10 years ago, hospice staff and volunteers in Milwaukee provided support during the final weeks of his wife's life, he said. "They were very, very helpful," he recalled.

As a hospice nurse, Drummy makes three or four patient visits each day, she said. She visits Benthien at his daughter's wooded home about twice each week. This semester, an Indiana State University nursing student, Jenny Goodwin-Nation, is observing Drummy's home visits.

"It's an honor to be invited into people's homes," Drummy said.

Hospice of the Wabash Valley is dedicated to providing skilled medical, counseling and spiritual support for patients with life-threatening illnesses and their families in Vigo, Vermillion, Parke, Clay and Sullivan counties. Medicare, Medicaid and many private insurance plans cover hospice care, according to the Hospice of the Wabash Valley Web site. For patients with no financial resources, Hospice of the Wabash Valley services are covered by donations and memorials, the Web site states.

Benthien, who was stationed on a U.S. Navy ship in Tokyo Harbor when the Japanese officially surrendered at the end of World War II, said he used to believe hospice care was only for people in the final days of life. "They really care for you way before that," he said. "They are very, very helpful."

Since coming to Terre Haute about two weeks ago, Benthien has had to make one visit to a doctor's office, but has been able to stay at his daughter's home most of the time. Being able to be with family has lifted his spirits, he said.

"My son-in-law is taking pretty good care of me," Benthien said with a laugh.

"It's an important service to the community," said Mayor Duke Bennett, who was also present at Benthien's hospice visit Tuesday. Bennett plans to officially declare November Home Health Care and Hospice Month in Terre Haute, he said.

Anyone requiring hospice services "would find [Hospice of the Wabash Valley] very helpful," Benthien said. "A person shouldn't be too proud to ask for help."

For more information about Hospice of the Wabash Valley, visit the organization's Web site at www.unionhospitalhealthgroup.org/vnahospice or call (812) 234-2515. Arthur Foulkes can be reached at (812) 231-4232 or arthur.foulkes@tribstar.com.

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