Our goal at Caris is to always to be able to honor our patients by respecting their dignity and last wishes.  We do this by learning and honoring the three most important things to them.  We recently had the privilege of helping a patient achieve one of her most three important things before she dies.

Diane had shared that one of her three most important things was riding The Great Smoky Mountain Wheel in Pigeon Forge. Kelli Galler, Hospital Nurse Liaison brought this up to Brooke Cornett, Caris Representative. She immediately offered to use some of her marketing budget to buy her tickets.  Brooke and Kelli called the Island of Pigeon Forge and began explaining what they wanted to do and why. The staff were delighted to help honor this request at no charge. They stated that they would leave 2 VIP tickets at the ticket office and all she and her husband needed to do was to show up and ask for the tickets.

Upon her next visit, nurse Kelli Galler explained that the gift was provided to them by the Island and how to obtain their tickets.  The patient and her husband could not believe that they were going to be able to check off this bucket list item. They immediately started weeping together.  What we were unaware of was not only was this a wish of the patient, but it was also their anniversary and something that they wanted to do together.

Diane and her husband received VIP treatment and were allowed to ride as many times as they wanted.  They rode during the day and rode again when it was dark outside so that they could see all the lights of Pigeon Forge and the miraculous view of the town.  They took pictures of the view and a selfie so that they can always remember this moment and for years to come.  Thank you, Island of Pigeon Forge. We can’t thank you enough for helping us fulfill a wish for our patient!