Josie had been travelling around Australia for six years, with her husband Michael and her little dog (a nine-year-old toy poodle), in a forty-foot bus converted into a motor home, when she was diagnosed with cancer. Well that put a spanner in the works! It impacted on her travelling and she came to Geelong to be further supported by her daughter.
Josie was accessing palliative care through the Barwon Health Palliative Care team and agreed to participate in a Room 64 podcast.
Josie says that her initial thoughts about Palliative Care were all wrong………
“….. I thought palliative care was when your number was up and this is where they put you to finish out your days. This was the end. But it’s not.
“Take advantage of it. Ask questions and don’t come in with stupid ideas like I had. Cause as I said, I thought they were going to put me in here and say, ‘That’s it. Gone.’ But it’s not like that and they will do everything they can do to help you.”
To find out more about the palliative care story of Josie and others the first series of Room 64 is available through the Barwon Health website with the second series due to be launched this week – Palliative Care Week 24th – 30th May.
https://www.barwonhealth.org.au/podcasts
The podcasts are also available through your preferred podcast app.
Room 64 are podcasts about palliative care. They are facilitated by a small group of volunteers and supported by the Barwon Health Palliative Care team.
Room 64 aims to encourage community discussion and awareness about palliative care through conversations. Conversations with patients, family members, doctors, nurses, volunteers and others that have been involved in or had an experience in palliative care.
Photo of Josie and Michael supplied. #humansingeelong
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