We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lolita Melhado. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lolita below.

Hi Lolita, thanks for joining us today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

The phrase “one accord” indicates two or more people sharing the same mind or thinking like-mindedly. Understanding it, and putting it into practice can enhance the way we think about sickness and death. There is power in knowledge and getting people to agree or be in complete agreement means that everyone is in one accord. Being in one accord also has a biblical reference and conveys a sense of purpose, faith, and oneness with God. That phrase is mentioned three times in the book of Acts (1:14; 2:1; 2:46). Every single believer was in agreement with all of the other believers concerning the Gospel of Jesus Christ and was working together to accomplish the will of God and not their own. The name OneAccord Health reflects our personal values, passion, and commitment to providing value-based conversations. When brainstorming ideas and names, we were unanimous and inspired by the meaning of “one accord”. The name of the company is consistent with our vision, that all patients with a serious illness be ready to engage in a vital conversation with stakeholders that inform practical decisions. The name is consistent with our mission which is to educate and empower healthcare providers in vital conversations with patients with serious illnesses to ensure that patients’ goals, values, and preferences are in agreement with advance care planning and communicated to stakeholders.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

While working as a clinical educator on the medical-surgical unit I observed that nurses were not comfortable in end-of-life care. Although we implemented and piloted the “no-one dies alone” program on our unit, nurses did not activate the service. Activation would generate a referral to the volunteer staff who had received special training to sit at the bedside with the dying patient. Subsequently, the nurses’ discomfort led to a nurse-led research project, evaluating nurses’ perception of end-of-life care” and ultimately improving end-of-life care. This project was the catalyst to returning to school, first to complete a master’s in nursing, and Ph.D., in nursing research with a focus on palliative care. I am a nurse practitioner with certifications in Family Practice and Advanced Hospice and Palliative Nursing. Palliative Care is the medical subspecialty that focuses on managing symptoms and stress associated with a serious illness to improve the quality of life for the patient and family by improving the physical, emotional, spiritual, and social needs of the patient. Getting patients, families, and healthcare providers “on the same page” is delicate work. In the clinical setting, we frequently have goals of care and advance care planning conversations with patients and families. These conversations with people when they are seriously ill and hoping to get better, can be stressful for patients and families and require skilled and empathetic communication. Ironically, I shied away from advance care planning early in my career because it was difficult. The framework or process for advance care planning is future-oriented around “what if” conversations, such as what if your breathing stops, and what if you have a terminal illness. The gap in this process made it difficult for an earnest “here and now” conversation with patients who were seriously ill. As a result, what I shied away from became my passion. I created an evidence-based process that normalizes the conversation of aligning treatment options with the individual’s values and preferences. At OneAccord Health, we provide education and training to healthcare professionals on the process. We offer a concierge service, “My Personal Wishes (MPW)” direct to consumers to provide education and access to the digital value-based advance care plan. MPW incorporates the individual’s values, preferences, and end-of-life care. The convenience of completing the digital advance care plan in the comfort and privacy of one’s home normalizes the experience for individuals.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Early in my career I had doubts about working as a palliative care nurse practitioner. I dreaded going to work and having conversations with patients and families. Discussing end of life is a difficult conversation because the uncertainty around prognosis makes it even harder to predict which outcome is likely for the patient. This made me apprehensive about seeing patients and discussing end of life concerns. On one such occasion I received a referral to see a young woman with metastatic uterine cancer. She had managed to live beyond the five-year age relative survival for the aggressive nature of her cancer. As I entered the room, she quickly sized me up and I introduced myself stating the reason for my visit. I began asking questions, but the patient stopped me. “You are just like the rest of them who come in here.” My insecurities and dread overcame me. These were difficult conversations. What do you mean, I asked. “You know my story, but I don’t know your story, everyone has a story” she said. In nursing school, we were taught to honor the nurse code of ethics and maintain the nurse-client professional relationship. How much of my personal story do I share while maintaining the nurse-client professionalism. I sat down at the bedside and shared my background and what led me to work in palliative care. In that moment, I realized the important task was connecting with the patient on a humanistic and personal level. In this instance, the patient was teaching me to remember my purpose in life. I had overcome many obstacles in life, growing up poor raised by a single parent. I grow up believing that my purpose in life is to help others. Sharing my story is a bridge to the past and path to the future. Sharing my story has become an important part of connecting with my patients. I no longer dread having difficult conversations with patients and families.

How’d you meet your business partner?

My cofounder and business partner James is my brother. We are a family of seven siblings raised by a single mom. Family, spirituality, and education were important values growing up. James was a successful businessman with a background in business development and an MBA in marketing. He had experience in pharmaceutical sales and investment products, and had started a small business. As a family we had discussed several business ideas. In 2017, we experienced the death of our mother. We wanted to create a business that would reflect our values of family, spirituality, and education.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.oneaccordhealth.com
• Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/lolita-melhado-ph-d-aprn-fnp-achpn-37089157
• Other: https://oneaccordhealth.thinkific.com

Image Credits
SoulPho Photography