A Letter of Thanks
Date: November 22, 2004

Simple thank yous are not uncommon at Floyd. Patients thank their caregivers. Families thank nurses and physicians. Employees thank each other. There are even two employee-designed thank you cards available from Materials Management that employees can use to thank one another.

However, more rare are thank you letters in which patients or family members describe in detail how grateful they are for the care they received at Floyd. One such letter arrived not too long ago from Marble, N.C. from a patient who had become addicted to pain killers following two back surgeries. She had sought care in Asheville, N.C., much closer to her home, but did not receive the help she needed.

Addicted to morphine and Oxycontin and no longer able to care for herself, Jo suffered from respiratory depression, was on oxygen therapy at home and remained in severe pain.

“I knew I was slowly dying, but I had almost gone beyond the point of caring,” she wrote in her letter.

Jo’s daughter saw her mother’s digression and began looking for help, first near her home and then on the Internet.

“She found several, but there was something about each place that made her insecure about taking me there. Then she checked out Floyd Behavioral Health Center. She made several calls to admissions, asked questions related to her concerns about taking and leaving me there, and what to expect as a patient. They were very patient with all her questions, and even though she called several times, never once made her feel as if she was a bother and let her know they wanted to be of help in any way they could.”

The next day, Jo and her daughter traveled 120 miles to Floyd Medical Center where she was evaluated and admitted to Floyd Behavioral Health Center. It was a life-changing decision.

“From the time I entered the doors at the hospital until I was discharged three weeks later, I was treated with the utmost kindness, courtesy and respect,” Jo wrote. “The entire staff gave me the competent, professional care I needed. The counseling I received prepared me to know what to expect and how to cope after I was discharged.

“On behalf of my family, friends and for myself, I want to thank you for literally giving me back my life. I am a retired RN, but hadn’t gotten to enjoy my retirement. This summer, I finished writing a book, got back into my gardening, pottery and woodworking, am living alone and taking care of myself and my pets and enjoying the grandchildren. I had my 70th birthday two weeks ago and am as active as most 50-year-olds. I have not taken, nor had any desire to take any addictive drugs. I thank God my daughter found you. As we North Carolina mountaineers would say, ‘You done good!’ I am grateful. May God bless you as you continue trying to help people have a better life.”

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