Random House Webster defines “integrity” as an uncompromising adherence to moral and ethical principles. For the past forty years I have been involved in the health care industry and one of the words I often hear people attach to themselves is “INTEGRITY.” Unfortunately all too often I see them involve themselves in situations that go against the very principles of the word.

As a self-appointed advocate for the elderly and the shut-ins, I have had to make decisions that sometimes challenge my integrity. It was a Good Friday and I had promised my staff that we would close the office at 1:00 pm and begin the Easter weekend early. At 12:55 p.m. a call came into the office, it was a daughter calling from New York seeking help for her mother who lives here, in California, alone. It seemed that her mother had fallen and she was unable to discern the severity of the problem. I was already in the mind set of being off on a mini vacation, and believe me I needed that vacation. Then that small voice in my head spoke and I remembered that I promised I would be an advocate—and that meant no matter what I wanted to do, I needed to help.

When I arrived at Mrs. Jones’ home, I discovered that she was in bed, in a lot of pain and had not eaten for two days. Despite this she thought that she could have waited until after the Easter holiday to call her physician. Seeing the state she was in broke my heart. The fact that she had reconciled to being in that state for any period of time only further encouraged my next actions.

I called her physician, lined up a caregiver and set up transportation to get her to her physician’s office. I also prepared her something to eat and stayed with her until the caregiver arrived.

When I set out that evening, I was going to see a prospective
client, but by the end I realized that my satisfaction came from knowing that I had helped two people. The first, a kind woman in clear need of assistance. The second, an anxious, caring daughter fearing the worst from over 3,000 miles away.

I was reminded then as I am so often that this is what this business is all about. It’s about seeing the person in need discovering how we can best serve that person. It’s thinking less about our own personal gains and more about how our positive actions will have a positive result. Knowing that Mrs. Jones was being cared for and her daughter in New York was able to have some peace of mind left me feeling good inside.

While you may not work in a profession that provides you an opportunity to serve people so obviously in need, there are things that you can do to be a person of integrity.
  1. Be true to your word no matter what. This may sometimes mean working late or volunteering when you'd rather be relaxing but integrity requires that you say what you mean, mean what you say and take action to prove it.
  2. Honor your commitments. If you make a promise, keep it. If you can't keep it, don't make it. Simple to say but challenging to do, especially in this world of push-pull.
  3. Encourage others to rise above their situation and be part of the solution. Don't sit back in judgment of what others aren't doing. Support and reward their efforts to help with praise and recognition. You never know what other kind deeds you'll inspire.
Integrity makes me my neighbor’s keeper. In the story I shared, Mrs. Jones needed a person who cared, a person who could help her. Living in integrity prompted me to abandon immediate gratification to honor my commitment to help. My reward came from the positive feelings and from seeing a person's burden lessened. Today, Mrs. Jones is doing great and she says that she will always remember the day that an angel came to her door.