By her mid-30s, Metta Johnson had done a lot with her life. She had married young and had children. She had taught Bible study classes, led Girl Scouts and worked in a ministry for the mentally challenged.
But something was missing.
 BARRY WILLIAMS/Special |
| Metta Johnson checks on stroke patient Velma Weeks, 78, at Sunrise Assisted Living Center at Huntcliff Summit in Sandy Springs. |
 BARRY WILLIAMS/Special |
| Metta Johnson checks Velma Weeks' blood pressure. 'As a nurse, I believe that this type of work is the culmination of my nursing career and the greatest use of all my experience and skills,' Johnson said. |
"You can only do so much as a volunteer," she said. "I felt very called to be a nurse, and I wanted to make a difference," said Johnson, RN, BSN, OCN, CHPN, CMC.
Johnson, 61, worked in oncology for the first few years of her career. Seeing an unfilled need, she and her husband, Clyde (former CFO of Georgia Baptist Hospital), founded Haven House Hospice in 1991.
"It was the first in-patient hospice in Atlanta, and we started it specifically for people with AIDS," she said.
Later, the organization was expanded to include all patients with terminal illnesses, and a home hospice program was added in the mid-1990s.
"I'm proud of what we did in hospice," Johnson said. "I felt like we set the standards and raised the bar, and Atlanta has six or eight other good hospice programs now. That's not true of every city."
But Johnson began to see another area in which she could have an impact.
"I saw that the health care system was complex and the aging system was complex. I saw a generation of people who were not prepared to live so long," Johnson said. "If a woman lives to 65, she can expect to live until 85, on average — 14 years independent and six years dependent. For a man, it's 82 — 13 years independent and four years dependent."
Johnson became a certified geriatric-care manager, which requires three years of supervised experience. In 2002, she founded Metta Johnson & Associates. The company provides comprehensive geriatric management, which includes help with daily affairs and money management.
Johnson's goal is to help seniors and their families take control of issues associated with aging.
"Seniors are a large target market, and not everyone is in it for the right reasons," she said.
Johnson is proud that the nurses, care managers, social workers, counselors and health care financial experts on her staff have the credentials, ethics and experience to help in a variety of aging circumstances.
"We see our clients as whole persons, with biological, psychological, social and spiritual needs," she said. "Our goal, which comes from my nursing background, is to attain the highest level of wellness for every person.
"At the end of life, that may be for the patient to be out of pain and able to communicate with his (or her) family — to have a sense of worth and peace."
Johnson spends much of her time traveling to see clients throughout metro Atlanta and Georgia.
"Each aging situation is different and needs individual assessment," she said.
Sometimes, Johnson coordinates care among doctors or between a hospital and a rehabilitation facility. Other times, she acts as a liaison between a doctor and a client to more fully explain a diagnosis or to manage medications. She also helps clients make the transition to nursing homes and continues to serve them there.
Often, Johnson helps families through difficult decisions.
"No one listens to seniors, so my role is to empower them to become a part of the decision-making process," she said. "As you're talking and evaluating, you need to take their needs into account. They may want to live alone, and, yes, there's a greater risk, but safeguards can be put in place.
"It takes a lot of interpersonal skills to be a care manager."
Johnson uses her nursing background to get a full medical history while assessing clients and making recommendations about health care or living arrangements.
"A 78-year-old who has been living independently may fall and break a hip. She may be confused in the hospital, but that doesn't mean she's suffering from dementia," Johnson said. "That's when a comprehensive medical profile can be a tremendous help to health care professionals."
Sometimes, Johnson does "legacy work," recording and typing a client's life story.
"One client was a WAVE (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) in World War II. She's paralyzed, but she still has an opinion on Iraq and the upcoming election," she said. "Won't that be fascinating to read years from now?"
Aiming for the highest level of wellness for her patients, Johnson thinks that her presence makes a difference. "I believe I have the art of being present," she said.
She is certified in oncology nursing, palliative care, hospice and geriatric case management, so Johnson's presence is an informed one.
"As a nurse, I believe that this type of work is the culmination of my nursing career and the greatest use of all my experience and skills," she said. "It comes from my heart, and I think people see that."
When people ask Johnson about retirement and her career exit strategy, she answers: "I don't have one. I feel 41. I'm happy to be alive, and this is a real good place to put my energy."