Going Home
Date: June 28, 2004

Juan left the jungle mountainsides of Guatemala in search of the American Dream, not so much for himself as for future generations. He and his wife settled in Cedartown. Juan found a good job, and the couple had two children.

Eight years into their pursuit, Juan noticed a pain in his abdomen. He ignored it until he could ignore it no more, and by then it was too late. Juan was diagnosed with late-stage colon cancer. He sought treatment at Floyd Medical Center.

The prognosis was not good, but Juan closed his eyes to the truth. His doctors and nurses could find a cure for him. He was sure of it.

Over the next several months Juan returned to Floyd Medical Center’s Oncology Unit time and again. Each time the cancer was worse than before, and each time Juan was certain that his caregivers could take away his disease.

Over time, Juan built a relationship with his nurses and his physician, Dr. David Halverson, and he finally came to the realization that a cure was not possible. It was time to make those difficult end-of-life decisions that are too often ignored until it’s too late to make them.

Juan’s nurses urged him to spend his last days with his family, building memories with them, but Juan was hesitant to leave the security of the Oncology Unit where his pain was managed and his other symptoms were treated.

Finally, the Oncology nurses convinced Juan that it is better to see the sun set with family than to catch a glimpse of it from a hospital room.

Home. The idea was compelling, yet Juan remained frightened, because the home he had in mind was not the Cedartown house he shared with his extended family, but the Guatemalan jungle where he had played as a boy and where his parents still lived.

Juan’s caregivers leapt into action.

Dr. Halverson purchased four airline tickets for Juan and his family. His nurses called Rep. Phil Gingrey’s office for help with passports for Juan’s two young children, and when they became entangled in bureaucratic red tape, the nurses called on Floyd’s Coordinated Care Department to help with the miracle.

Everything was in order for Juan to fly home, but the family, unfamiliar with the process of flying internationally and speaking limited English, missed the flight after Juan’s wife refused to check her family’s baggage.

The stress of the trip to Atlanta and the failed flight further weakened Juan. He was taken to an Atlanta area hospital, but he demanded to return to Floyd.

Once again in our care, Dr. Halverson, Juan’s nurses and the Coordinated Care Department began planning a second attempt, knowing that time was of the essence.

We knew that there was probably two to three weeks left of his life, and we felt strongly that he should have his last wish.

He had a mother and father in Guatemala. His wife had a mother and father there. They had never seen their grandchildren.

Reconnecting with their family was important for another reason. Juan’s wife had depended on him to provide for their family. She could not speak English, and, because of their insistence that Juan would be cured, she had not made plans for what to do after Juan died. She was going to need assistance with her children.

Dr. Halverson bought four more tickets for Juan and his family. The Coordinated Care Department called Delta Airlines, explained Juan’s unique situation, and asked for special arrangements for his flight home.

Phone calls to Atlanta and Los Angeles and sage advice from Delta employees resulted in a mission to ensure that Juan would again see the Guatemalan jungle.

Juan would need a large sum of medications. He was going to need a catheter inserted into his arm to allow him to receive his regimen of medicines before, during and after his flight. He was going to need a nurse by his side, and in this day of high-level security, he was going to need an exemption from some of those security measures.

One of Juan’s nurses, Leashia Mullins, volunteered to travel to the airport with Juan and be with him until he boarded his plane. Our Emergency Medical Service agreed to carry Juan to the airport. Red Caps would meet him at the curb, and Leashia was granted a pass to remain with Juan through all the security checkpoints.

We organized all of the papers for Juan, his wife and children to help them get through security. They needed personal identification, passports, visas, other permits and a letter from his physician stating the seriousness of his illness and why he would need to carry controlled substances with him on the flight.

The Oncology nursing team prepared Juan for the flight. The Floyd Pharmacy prepared 400 vials of medication for him, and the Oncology nurses hand labeled each vial, a requirement for them to pass through security.

Leaving no detail undone, we asked Juan’s family to come to Floyd Medical Center for lunch on us, figuring this would ease the transition from the hospital to the airport.

Prepared to provide lunch for four, we were greeted by 15 family members who gathered to see Juan and his immediate family off to Guatemala.

The dining room was full, but Linda Fricks quickly took action, arranging for Juan’s family to get their meals and to eat in the private dining room.

The meals complete and the bags backed, an EMS team helped Juan and Leashia into an ambulance for the trip to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Juan’s family followed behind.

Meanwhile, the Coordinated Care Department continued to work behind the scenes, checking for flight delays, gate changes and weather reports.

With everything on schedule and Leashia at Juan’s side, Juan and his family boarded the airplane and lifted off into the sky for Guatemala.

Juan’s flight was on a Wednesday, and we heard from his family the following Sunday.

The flight further weakened Juan, who was hospitalized immediately after his plane landed. Back in his homeland, Juan made a decision for himself. He checked out of the hospital to go home to his parents. The journey was difficult, a 12 mile route over a mountain in a pickup truck.

Juan died two days later, but that was somehow OK. He returned to Guatemala. He had talked about growing up in a part of the country that was largely unsettled with refreshing jungle waterfalls and all kinds of animals.

His children met their grandparents for the first time. His last wish came true. Juan made it home.

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