MOMENTS OF Compassion III
The Transformative Power of Art Therapy
Ronnie Stinnett, a patient at Bluegrass Care Navigators (BCN), discovered a unique way to find a new purpose through the transformative power of art therapy.
Ronnie battled a variety of physical and mental health issues. To provide the best physical and emotional care, his clinical team referred him to integrative medicine. Using a holistic approach, Tiffany Rose, art therapy intern at BCN, used creativity to help him cope with his anxiety and find color in a world that had previously been all gray.
“Art puts me in another world and keeps me from thinking about the bad,” Ronnie said. “It helps me block things out and I can enjoy the time I’m making art.”
Through painting and drawing, Ronnie developed healthy coping mechanisms to manage his anxiety that was exacerbated by shortness of breath. As Ronnie used discarded items to create something new, his newfound creativity helped him find renewed meaning in his own life. For example, as he turned boards discarded from heating and air contractors into a vibrant solar system he called Finale, he realized that even overlooked people have purpose.
“Using complimentary medicine techniques such as art, music or massage therapy can help doctors manage anxiety disorder without as much reliance on medication,” Whitney Clay, Integrative Medicine Program Coordinator, said. “Doctors are able to deprescribe and offer a more holistic way of managing that anxiety disorder. It’s also a tool that Ronnie used independently to give him a sense of control, purpose and participation in his own wellness.”
“My hope is to be happy, to associate better with people and to understand the life I didn’t used to care too much about,” he said. “I realized there’s more to life than working, which I can’t do anymore. I didn’t have hope until I started with Bluegrass Care Navigators, and they helped me change for the better.”
Art therapy is part of the integrative medicine program at Bluegrass Care Navigators and is made possible through donor support. Ronnie is one of many patients who have felt isolated and found hope because of these therapies. The impact of art therapy extends far beyond the confines of a canvas; it touches the hearts and souls of individuals like Ronnie, who have discovered newfound strength and resilience through the process of creation.
Bluegrass Grief Care Helps Survivors Heal
by Janet, Bluegrass Grief Care Participant
October 28 was the worst day of my life. That was the day that my 18-year-old son died by suicide after a long struggle with depression. The grief was crushing, and I was plunged into a world that was totally different from my life up until then, with no clue of what to do next or if there even was a life after his passing.
BCN gave me a way forward. On a friend’s advice, I called BCN and asked about grief counseling. My counselor listened to me with kindness and compassion. She gave me practical information about how to take care of myself during this horrible time. Most importantly, she let me know I was not alone and reassured me that what I was feeling was normal and I wasn’t going crazy. I will be forever grateful for that.
BCN’s monthly child loss support group connected me with other parents who had also suffered this unimaginable loss. I started attending shortly after my son died and attend it to this day. We support each other, share our experiences, laugh together and cry together. Grief isolates you, and many of the people closest to us are scared by it and back away. The child loss group is a safe space where each of us knows that we are truly understood and where we can say what we feel without any fear of judgment. I am so grateful to BCN and the counselor who gives time each month to lead this group. Because of it, we are healing.
BCN helps us survivors heal in other ways. At the holidays, there are sessions on how to deal with this difficult time of year. We get together to make ornaments and pillows in honor of our lost loved ones. We send our other children to grief camps. That ongoing support is so important to those of us who are grieving and who often feel the world is moving on and forgetting the people we have lost.
Today, I can say I am in a better place than I ever thought I would be. I’m taking joy in life and beginning to remember my son with joy, too. I know I have support from BCN when I need it.
Thanks to the support of donors in our Caring Community, our trained and caring staff are available to help surviving family and friends cope with their grief. Support groups and short-term individual counseling services are available to children and adults, as they navigate through their journey of grief.
Bluegrass PACE Care Helps Kentuckian Walk Again
Barbara Harris, current participant in Bluegrass PACE Care, believes that enrolling in PACE is the best decision she ever made for her physical, mental and emotional health. At the Bluegrass PACE Center, she’s found a new community outside of her home, made new friends and receives patient-centered medical care. As a result, she’s learning to take her first steps post-amputation.
“The Bluegrass PACE Center is wonderful because I love my home and I want to be there, but at the same time, you get tired of sitting in the house with nowhere to go and nothing to do,” Barbara said. “So they pick you up and bring you to the Center where you have all day to socialize, can eat a good meal and get your medicine.”
Several years ago, Barbara’s leg was amputated due to poor circulation. She was unable to walk because her prosthesis was too heavy and didn’t fit correctly. The team at Bluegrass PACE Care measured Harris for a new prosthesis and the therapists are working to strengthen her legs to prepare her to walk when the new leg arrives.
“Bluegrass PACE Care has improved my quality of life by being able to get out of the house and socialize,” she said. “I feel younger, and I haven’t had this much get up and go in quite a few years,” she said.
Bluegrass PACE Care allows participants aged 55+ to age in place wherever they call home with support from the PACE Center. PACE provides comprehensive healthcare and a customized plan for your individual needs. PACE participants receive medical and personal care, meals and social activities at the PACE Center, along with transportation to and from the PACE Center and all authorized medical appointments.
Culturally Aware Care for Muslim Refugee Family
Our central Kentucky hospice team recently cared for a Muslim refugee patient and her family as she faced a terminal diagnosis along with numerous challenges, including language barriers, financial struggles and food insecurity.
The hospice team compassionately utilized our interpreter service to provide physical and emotional support to the patient and family, as well as write medication instructions in her native language so that she could understand her care plan.
Our team helped the patient receive Medicaid assistance and support from a local clinic, while our volunteers delivered donated items such as fruit, blankets, socks and personal supplies.
As her journey came to an end, our team worked with the Islamic Mosque to ensure the family’s faith and cultural burial considerations would be respected, and we provided further support to the family through our Burial with Dignity fund.
Bluegrass Care Navigators walks hand in hand with the community to ensure that every individual receives the care they deserve, regardless of insurance status, ability to pay, language proficiency or cultural background. Your generosity helps everyone we serve have access to the compassionate care and support they need.
Patient Leaves Lasting Legacy Through Heartbeat Song
Irene Thomas faced many challenges as the result of her dementia diagnosis. Her family struggled to provide care, and they believe that BCN was an answer to their prayers. Team BCN coupled expert, compassionate clinical hospice care with support from our integrative medicine team that helped boost Irene’s physical, mental and emotional wellbeing and allowed her to leave a meaningful legacy for her family.
“The professionalism, the details, the persistent care for my mother from BCN had a huge impact on my mother’s life, and I honestly believe that BCN helped my mother live longer because of their care,” Troy Thomas, Irene’s son, said.
From bluegrass melodies to old-time tunes, music embodied the essence of Irene’s life. The songs she loved wove together tales of her Eastern Kentucky heritage, community, resilience and traditions. As a clogger and square dancer, Irene taught dancing lessons for more than 65 years. She appeared on Country Music Television, played on a country music video and performed at the Grand Ole Opry twice. She also served as an “extra” in the iconic movie Coal Miner’s Daughter, depicting the life of music legend and Eastern Kentucky native, Loretta Lynn.
“When BCN played music for my mother, her demeanor and the expression on her face changed noticeably, and you could see the joy and happiness on her face,” Troy said. “She moved her head back and forth, and you could tell for a moment that she was in her element listening to the guitar music and singing. It was a pure joy seeing her smile and relive her life.”
Like many in the region, Irene lost treasured heirlooms, irreplaceable photographs and memories spanning a lifetime in the devastating Eastern Kentucky flood in 2022. Afterward, it seemed impossible for her to leave a legacy to her family, but our integrative medicine team stepped in to help. The team recorded Irene’s heartbeat, combined it with an original recording of Loretta Lynn’s “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” and created a Heartbeat Song for Irene and her family to cherish for generations to come.
As Irene’s family listened to Irene’s heartbeat song, they received a new kind of heirloom.
Listen to Irene’s Heartbeat Song
Medical Respite Program Gives Patient Hope
Since 2017, BCN’s Medical Respite Program, in partnership with the Lexington Fayette Urban County Government (LFUCG), has offered short-term, medically-focused hotel stays to hundreds of Lexingtonians experiencing homelessness. When Mistey Cobb entered this program in November of 2023, she not only received the medical care she needed, but also had access to resources that provided permanent housing and the hope of a more stable, brighter future.
“We wouldn’t have made it through last winter without BCN,” Mistey said. “BCN let me know that there’s someone who cared about me besides just us. When you’re going through that many surgeries, and someone is coming to check on you and urging you to take care of yourself, it makes you want to care for yourself more.”
When Mistey entered BCN’s care, she and her life partner had just been evicted. She also had a serious infection and needed several surgeries. Because our medical respite program offered a
safe place to recover, she was able to undergo the medical procedures and receive the post-operative care she needed. BCN’s team of nurses and social workers addressed her health needs and connected her to the appropriate community resources available to her.
As a result of the care and support she received, Mistey was able to secure permanent housing, along with necessary medical equipment and disability insurance that allowed her to remain in her home and community.
BCN’s medical and winter respite programs provide a range of essential, patient-centered services within Fayette County. Services include hospital discharge planning, arranging post-acute care, transportation assistance, food provision, medication reconciliation, and care coordination to facilitate discharge to a safe setting.
This program is made possible thanks to support from private donors and from the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government through federal award numbers SLFRP0292/SLFRP3418 granted to LFUCG by the U.S. Department of Treasury.
BCN Offers Language Services to Provide Care for All
Our Northern Kentucky Team recently provided dignity and the comfort of hospice care to a nonEnglish speaking family with a terminally ill baby. After being born with a heartbreaking prognosis, the baby was expected to survive only two weeks.
Working through a language barrier and the family’s culture that discouraged talking about death, our hospice team compassionately utilized our language service to communicate and provide physical and emotional support to the family. Through an interpreter, our team guided the family through critical end-of-life discussions in a culturally appropriate way, and the family expressed genuine appreciation for the compassionate support provided by our hospice team during such a devasting time in their lives.
Thanks to the unwavering support Team BCN provided for the family through the Care For All Fund, the baby was able to live comfortably at home for over two months. This fund is made possible only through generous gifts from our community.
Compassionate Care for an Uninsured Patient
Our commitment to provide compassionate care to all, regardless of financial situation, is exemplified in the care we recently provided to a hospice patient with COPD, who had no insurance, Medicare or Medicaid.
When the patient arrived at the Greg and Noreen Wells Bluegrass Hospice Care Center in Hazard, he was unresponsive, without immediate family nearby. Despite the distance, our team communicated daily with the patient’s sister to ensure she was updated on his condition, actively involved in his care, and supported emotionally.
Throughout his journey, our team remained dedicated to keeping the patient comfortable and provided him with companionship during his final days. After his peaceful passing, Team BCN guided the patient’s sister through burial plans and affordable cremation options. Through the generousity of donors, we are proud to deliver the same level of care to this patient that everyone deserves at no cost.
Bright Path Patient Lives Like a Superhero
TJ Buckles shows all who know him how to live with resilience, courage and superhuman strength. Born at 24 weeks gestation with only an 11 percent chance of survival, he spent the first 250 days of his life in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Diagnosed with cerebral palsy, TJ had to learn to live with the challenges of a tracheostomy, ventilator and the constant risk of respiratory complications. In the face of adversity, the Buckles family responded like superheroes, with unwavering love and advocacy.
Amidst the whirlwind of medical appointments and treatments, Liz, TJ’s mom, found herself navigating a maze of uncertainty. But she refused to let adversity get in the way of TJ’s care. With the help of BCN’s Bright Path Pediatric Palliative Care Program, she embraced her role as an advocate for TJ and has used her knowledge and influence to help other medically complex children and families.
“Bright Path helped us find resources and connected us with appropriate providers, as well as helped us find and fill out necessary waivers,” Liz said. “Every step that the parent of a medically fragile child must go through, they’ve walked me through. I can be the advocate for TJ, but they are the advocate for me!”
The Buckles family struggled with many daily challenges. Inconsistent nursing care meant that Liz often had to juggle her responsibilities as a vet clinic manager with caring for TJ, sometimes carrying him around in a backpack carrier while she worked.
With support from Bright Path, TJ receives tailored healthcare, resources and education that have improved his quality of life. Our Bright Path program is made possible through the support of donors from our Caring Community and serves as a beacon of hope for many families.
Massage Therapy Relieves Stress and Gives Joy
Through our integrative medicine program, our massage therapist gives the comforting gift of touch to patients, relieving stress and providing companionship. Sarah, our massage therapist, recently visited a husband and wife, both in our hospice care, with the goal of providing supportive therapy to relieve stress and anxiety.
Although the wife did not need as much care as her husband, she chose to stay with him in a facility that could provide the necessary care so they could be together. When Sarah entered their room, the wife’s face lit up with joy. She said she had been depressed lately and was feeling socially isolated in her current environment. She had also been experiencing physical pain in her legs from a fall several weeks prior.
“As a massage therapist, I enjoy relieving a person’s stress, pain and anxiety through touch,” Sarah said. “Our time together often leads to conversation and companionship, and it gives me so much joy to help patients know they are not alone.”
As Sarah gently massaged the wife’s legs and feet, she could see the stress melt away from her.
“She was so thankful for our time together, and she told me that I was her angel today,” Sarah said. “But I think she was mine, too.”
Art, music and massage therapies are part of the integrative medicine program at Bluegrass Care Navigators and are generously supported by donors. Many patients who have felt isolated have found hope because of these interventions. The impact of these complimentary therapies extends far beyond the confines of a canvas, lyrics or touch; they connect the hearts and souls of individuals to others, providing comfort, peace and joy.
