The Snowman
Thomas Scharzgruber
I accompanied my G.P. Attachment doctor to see an elderly lady. We visited her at home as she is a terminally-ill patient and cannot leave the house anymore. She was going to die shortly and only receives palliative care.
There had been a heavy snowfall on this particular day and whilst chatting with her she told me that she loved to build snowmen when she was young and that it would really make her happy to go and build the last snowman in her life on that day – obviously that was not possible anymore.
When we left her I had an idea – I built a snowman in my G.P.’s garden, took a photo with my camera, printed it and brought it to this lady the following day. She was so happy she had tears in her eyes – she could not build a snowman anymore but I did it for her.
I do not know if this lady is still alive but it was a good feeling to bring some joy to her life again.
Whole Person Care – Year One
This photo made me consider all the ways old age can restrict you from enjoying things you would have enjoyed earlier in life. Thought it was a really nice idea.
I love how this photo shows the importance of remembering the small things are important to patients, and that these can have a massive impact on the life and well-being of a patients.
Despite such a difficult situation, this photo embodies the positivity of patients even when facing death. The simplicity of the photo is wonderful and when coupled with the reflection, shows how such simple things that we do can have a huge positive impact for a patient. Although it isn’t said explicitly, this artwork reminds me of support and the happiness that it can cause.
Despite the difficulties, this photo embodies the positivity of patients even when facing death. The simplicity of the photo is wonderful and, when coupled with the reflection, shows how such simple things can have a huge positive impact on a patient. Although not said explicitly, this photo reminds me of support and how it can bring hope and/or happiness to those that really need it.
This picture provides insight to just how much an illness affects a persons life, making them unable to do even the simplest of actions. The lady simply wanted to build a snowman, but has become incapable of doing even that. it also shows to what extent small thoughtful actions can have on peoples lives.
This will always be one of my favourites in OOOH! It inspires us to do similar deeds.
I love this piece as it really reinforces how small actions can make such a huge difference to peoples lives, by being thoughtful and listening to the patient it had such a positive effect. This is very inspiring and reminds me to always try to listen carefully to what people are saying and try to do things that make them feel heard and valued.
This is a truly beautiful piece that really demonstrates how small acts of human kindness can create such a big difference in people’s lives. It draws attention to the fact that there are so many elderly people living in isolation from the fast-moving world around them and how it is important it is that we do not forget them, their feelings and the lives they once lived. It would be great for more to be done to connect older patients with younger generations so that interactions such as these can benefit more people and to give them the time to talk to another individual and be listened to.