Betty Lou Carter (right) has enjoyed a 30-year career working with nursing homes and assisted living facilities. And based on her experience, Betty Lou chose the Swing Bed Unit at Macon Community Hospital to care for her father, Billy, during his final days.

“Dad had suffered a bad fall and broken several ribs,” Betty Lou explains. ”He had also decided not to receive treatment for what doctors suspected was lung cancer. It was time to find palliative care. It would take me two hours to describe the wonderful way my father was treated! For example, it made Dad uncomfortable to have female nurses assist him to the bathroom. So the staff made sure a male nursing assistant was always there to help. That’s the way everybody was, from the rehab specialists to housekeeping. They were always asking ‘Anything you need?’ And you won’t find more a more compassionate and knowledgeable caregiver than Chaundel Presley (left, a family nurse practitioner).”

For Betty Lou, Macon Community Hospital is a true blessing for our community. “During my career, I’ve traveled to small towns all over the Southeast, from Maryland to Florida, and I’ve seen so many critical access hospitals that have closed,” Betty Lou says. “To have a hospital with the services and care that Macon Community Hospital provides is a benefit we should never forget.”