August 3, 2015, ST. LOUIS - Congratulations to our Ernestine Glanton, recognized by our parent company SSM Health Health as a “SSM Health Hero” for consistently going above and beyond. She was recognized today (and photographed above with assistant nursing directors Julie Botterbush, RN, and Mary Beth Deines, RN) in an event in her honor.
For the past 20 years, Glanton, a care partner with Saint Louis University Hospital, has connected with each of her hematology/oncology patients. Ever ready to sit and chat with a patient, Ernestine focuses on treating each person like family. She holds nothing back, whether she needs to laugh – or cry – with patients, to ensure they feel heard, buoyed and supported.
Many of Ernestine’s patients are in the hospital for at least 60 days. Their extended stays allow Ernestine to develop close, trusting relationships with them. So even after they are discharged, Ernestine will often call patients at home to check up on them. And out of her own funds, Ernestine frequently gifts patients with their favorite toiletries, knowing how much they missed being able to use them during their treatments. Ernestine often visits with patients in their homes or nursing facilities as well.
Ernestine is an innovative, out-of-the-box thinker, as evidenced by a device she invented to help patients maintain some sense of independence by bathing on their own. Basically, the clip-like device rotates a soapy wash cloth by battery, requiring only that patients be able to hold the device by hand. Ernestine came up with the device for her own son, after he was in an accident and she wanted to allow him to maintain his independence.
She has gone above and beyond in her caring for others as she shared the device with her patients who could benefit from it, just as her son had.
Staff say they most appreciate that Ernestine motivates everyone around her to default to positivity – and to remember that laughter is the best medicine. For her positive outlook and tender care, Ernestine was named a Care Partner of the Year in 2014. And she is the first recipient of the “You Were Caught!” award, which the hospital recently initiated, to showcase exemplary caring on the hematology/oncology floor.
Her patients and colleagues alike agree that Ernestine is truly dedicated, which makes her a SSM Health Hero.
