Cathy Gillette, RN, MSN, CRNP, ACHPN
By Erin Flynn Jay
Cathy Gillette spent 22 years working as a critical care nurse and a decade in primary care before making the decision to transfer to hospice care. At the time, Hospice of the Sacred Heart in Wilkes Barre, PA was a brand-new non-profit hospice. Gillette chose to become an Advanced Certified Hospice and Palliative Nurse (ACHPN) because she wanted to provide comfort, care, hope, and choice for patients as they navigated their end-of-life journeys.
“My heart felt that we should pay more attention and respect to the dying. For 22 years as an intensive care unit nurse, I saw firsthand fear-filled, painful, and futile care.”
Becoming Certified
Gillette has now been an Advanced Certified Hospice and Palliative Nurse for more than 11 years. She originally pursued certification not only to strengthen her own skills but also to help build credibility for the organization.
“We were just building up. We have increased tenfold in the past few years; we serve nine counties in northeast PA. We felt it was important to be leaders in hospice and palliative care.”
Preparing for the certification exam required commitment. Gillette used a study guide and dedicated two hours each night to studying.
“During the exam, there was a tornado and the power went out. We sat for about an hour, then we went back and had to start over again. Everything had been lost,” she recalled with a laugh.
Her best tactic was simple discipline: studying nightly from 9 to 11 after putting her children to bed. She says there was nothing she wished she had done differently—her preparation was enough to carry her through.
A Nurse Who Goes the Distance
Today, Hospice of the Sacred Heart serves around 300 patients daily, with a ten-bed freestanding inpatient unit where Gillette takes primary responsibility. She also performs face-to-face Medicare recertifications and travels to see patients wherever they call home.
“Wherever and whatever their journey, our mission is to provide the best care.”
Gillette recalls a patient with terminal cancer who wished to spend his final days camping with his dog. With the help of a nurse colleague experienced in camping, the hospice team supplied food, equipment, and support to make his last wish come true. He remained at a local campground with his dog until just days before his passing.
Another patient was a 21-year-old with neurofibromatosis and end-stage disease who had been sick since childhood and lived a largely isolated life. The hospice team organized extra visits, secured a handicap-equipped computer, and even threw her a birthday celebration shortly before her death. Gillette gave her flannel sheets and a penguin comforter, while her nurse case manager brought her favorite food and flowers.
“She had been writing a story about a healthy girl and all her adventures, and we talked about it. It was a simple celebration, but it meant so much to her.”
A Day in the Life of a CHPN
A typical day for Gillette begins with inpatient rounds alongside the interdisciplinary team. Together, they review admissions, discharges, deaths, and patients expected to be in their final week of life.
She visits the ten patients in the inpatient unit, writing orders and ensuring care plans are followed. Later, she travels to patients’ homes to perform recertification visits. Evenings and nights often bring on-call responsibilities for both road nurses and inpatient staff.
Her greatest impact, she says, comes from symptom management—relieving physical suffering while also connecting patients and families with social work, counseling, and emotional support.
Dedication to Hospice and Palliative Care
Gillette emphasizes the importance of teamwork in hospice care, crediting her colleagues for their compassion and dedication.
She is a Certified Registered Nurse Practitioner (CRNP) and holds Advanced Certified Hospice and Palliative Nurse (ACHPN) credentials, representing the highest level of certification in her specialty.
For Gillette, hospice care is not just a career but a calling. Through her work, she brings dignity, comfort, and peace to patients and families during the most challenging times of their lives.
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