Posted by Matham on 4/29/11 5:56pm
Msg #381778
A godsend
Several weeks ago, I got a request to perform a notarization at a local hospital. Thinking they had found my add on Craigslist, I ventured to the hospital. The son set up the appointment for the mother who was the patient; if I remember correctly, it was your run of the mill POA that needed notarization.
Afterwards, the son said to me that the notaries in the hospital "only do DNR's", which I thought was odd.
So I went down to the reception desk and asked whether I could leave behind my business cards for any current or future residents. They referred me to Nursing Administration. There, they indicated that I would need to go to each department if I wanted to do that, but each department would probably not need me as they have their own notaries who work for free.
Fascinating.
Today, I answered the call of a woman whose sister needed a Durable Power of Attorney notarized. An hour before I arrived, the woman left a voicemail adding that they were also going to need an Advanced Health Care Directive notarized as well.
I arrived twenty minutes early. The woman, the sister who set up the appointment, met me outside her sister's room, as her sister had to be taken elsewhere for treatment. So, the woman led me out to one of the courtyards to wait while her sister returned.
I reviewed the documents, to familiarize myself with them and to pre-determine where the sister in the hospital needed to print, sign, initial and/or date. While we waited, the woman indicated that she was from Detroit and her sister has had some seriously severe medical issues since January and while she expressed she was hopeful her sister could be on the mend, I could tell that she was worried and concerned coupled with a weight of the world/reality that was about to put on her.
During the course of our conversation, she opened up to me about the situation, about how her sister is all alone here in california, and unfortunately, she will not be well enough when she gets out of the hospital to remain on her own, so she will go back to Detroit with her sister.
She talked about mortality and death and disease and fears and everything associated about the fragility of life. I told her how my father died of a rare autoimmune disease that affects only 8 in a million and is a lot like cancer, and in some ways, treated like cancer.
I've done nearly a dozen notarizations so far and each one has been shown up, sign, seal, deliver, go; not quite on a very humbling, Human connective level, like today. She was glad I was able to show up and frustrated by the hospital's inability/refusal to notarize for their needs.
So the sister came back from treatment and I knew she would be tired and that was plainly evident. Before I began, before I even asked for her ID, I indicated to her that the DPOA was fifteen pages of initialing and dating and I said that we were not in any rush, that to take her time, that if she needed to stop, to say it and we could stop for a moment.
Both women were incredibly receptive to this.
I started with the journal, had her sign and apply her right thumbprint, and then we proceeded with the DPOA, which went smoothly. I even asked her halfway through it how she was doing, and she said, though she was tired and ready for a nap, she was fine. I assisted with flipping through the pages; whether I was supposed to do this, helping her go from one page to the next, I am not certain.
At the completion of the DPOA, we went to the six page AHCD, which went smoothly. The only error that occurred there was that I accidentally applied my seal upside down; I hope that is not a huge problem.
Afterwards, I reviewed each document, made sure the initials were there, the correct date was there, the right signature. All was well.
The sister who set up the appointment indicated that in the future that there may be a will drawn up and that might need to be notarized. I handed her my business card and told her if she ever needed anything, to not hesitate to call. She was grateful for that, scoffing at the notaries provided in the hospital in the same breath.
Remarking to her sister in the bed, she said, "he's thorough, he's a godsend."
She also indicated that a social worker had found me and gave my info for them to call me. The social worker found me on one of the big 3 notary websites. But she couldnt remember the name of the social worker, cuz I wanted to go see the social worker.
At reception, all they could do was give me a business card with the number to social services.
Though the sister's predicament is heart wrenching, this was a very interesting and, for lack of a better word, rewarding notarization for it was more Human than anything else, and for that, I kind of like this career a little more.
|
