Helping Families Find Peace and Strength Through Palliative Care A generous donation will further the work of Ochsner’s Palliative Care Innovation Fund By Melissa G. Landry | Photo: Melissa G. Landry
comfortable, but they couldn’t,” she said. “They tried everything in the book.”
The art and science of endof-life care
Virginia Weinmann in her home in New Orleans.
Virginia Weinmann and her family have been patients at Ochsner since the very beginning. Back then, in 1942, the clinic was at the corner of Aline and Prytania streets in Uptown, New Orleans. “We knew Dr. Ochsner had started it and he had a very good reputation,” Virginia said. When Virginia’s husband, John Weinmann, started feeling unwell in 2016, it made perfect sense to go to Ochsner. They were longtime donors to many initiatives, including campaigns for research, educational lectures and unrestrictive gifts to provide help where it was most needed. John’s illness began with a backache. At first, the Weinmanns thought John had simply strained his back after falling out of bed not long before. But after an appointment with his primary care physician, they received news that no 18
April/May 2022
family wants to hear: John had cancer. The cancer was quickly spreading, and John’s pain was becoming unbearable. It only got worse as time went on. Within weeks, John was admitted to the hospital. Given the complicated nature of the disease, doctors had conflicting opinions on treatment options. The family was even given a hopeful prognosis at one point. “The doctor told us that he would treat it, and my husband would go home and be as good as new by September,” Virginia recalled. Although John improved initially, he regressed again. His immune system couldn’t withstand the treatment. On June 9, 2016, two days shy of their 61st wedding anniversary, John passed away. His loss was devastating for Virginia and her children, as were the few weeks prior. “They said that they could keep him
Palliative care is an area of medicine that focuses on improving the quality of life for patients living with serious illness and their families, like the Weinmanns. Despite the excellent care at Ochsner, Virginia wished she and John had received more palliative care services and guidance around end-of-life planning. She wanted more information to prepare herself, her husband and her children for enduring— and cherishing—their final days together. “People need to know the good and the bad,” Virginia said. Virginia had kept detailed notes throughout John’s last months. She realized that by sharing her feelings and experience, she could help others watching a loved one deal with harrowing illness. “I began to think that it would be helpful for others to have someone who really knows how to talk to the patient and the family, prepare them for what might happen, and help them go through it,” she said. A year after John’s passing, Virginia met with a doctor to discuss her ideas. The physician told her about palliative medicine, and the efforts at Ochsner to expedite treatment and improve communications. Virginia understood that this level of care was more about the art of treatment rather than the science of medicine. Virginia and John’s altruism spanned decades but, in 2021, Virginia made an exceptionally generous gift to Ochsner Palliative Care Innovation Fund. Her
