Welcome Back Andy Ingram!

Published on October 11, 2022

Chaplain Returns to Alive After a Year in Hospital Chaplaincy

Sometimes we come across a job opportunity that seems too good to pass up. That was the case for Alive Chaplain Andy Ingram when he left Alive to try working in a hospital. He imagined the new job and shorter commute might make up for leaving his Alive colleagues and a good work/life balance…but he quickly realized it wasn’t the case.

What brought you back?

Alive provided me with better work/life balance and less stress than the hospital. When talking to my wife about coming back to Alive, my oldest daughter (who was 9 at the time), interrupted us and said, “Wait, you are going back to your old job? That would be great!” I replied by saying, “Possibly, why would it be great?” She said, “I would get my daddy back.” I had no idea the stress of the hospital was having that kind of effect on me. That was all the confirmation I needed to move forward with the move.

Why do you love working at Alive?

Before leaving and coming back, I worked at Alive for 2 1/2 years on the Hickory Team and absolutely loved it. I love end-of-life care. I love working with an interdisciplinary team, going into patients’ homes and getting to know them in their environment, and I love the family atmosphere of Alive.

It lightens the burden to just have other people that you’re able to share the work with. In the hospice world, and especially in my experience at Alive, we are constantly communicating throughout the day, we need each other, we work well with each other, and we have to have each other to meet the patients’ and families’ needs as they journey through the end of life.