Faces of Trinity Health Mid-Atlantic: Lillian Reyes

This series spotlights non-provider colleagues who are helping create a safe, healing and compassionate environment both in and out of the hospital.

As a Community Health Worker at Saint Francis Hospital, Lillian Reyes goes above and beyond to advocate for her patients and get to know them beyond their diagnosis. In fact, she can often tell just by the tone of their voice when they’re not feeling well. For Reyes, it’s all about building trust and meeting patients where they are, all while helping them take control of their health.

Reyes has a longstanding presence in health care, having served as a medical assistant for 18 years. Even as an MA, she went the extra mile for the benefit of patients, securing food, diapers and other essentials when they were in need. Still, she wanted to do more.

That’s why three years ago, Reyes made the leap to become a Community Health Worker, serving as a vital bridge between the community and hospital. Whether she’s connecting patients to food, transportation and other resources, assisting with dietary changes, making sure they understand a complicated diagnosis, linking them with a social worker or simply offering words of encouragement, Reyes is by their side rooting for them every step of the way.

“Sometimes they just need that little push. It’s so rewarding in the end because you can see the outcome. You can see that their health is getting better. You can see that they’ve gained control of their health. For example, you can change diabetes. You can’t change the diagnosis, but you can change the way that you eat. You can change the way that you do your normal activities,” says Reyes.

The most rewarding part of the job

Ultimately, Reyes’ goal is to let patients know they’re not alone, no matter what they’re dealing with. Many individuals that she encounters are overwhelmed by a diagnosis or condition and have a “glass half empty” mindset. That’s where Reyes steps in. There’s no judgement—only a desire to empower and relate to them on a personal level that they might not experience with a provider.

“Sometimes they just need that little push. It’s so rewarding in the end because you can see the outcome. You can see that their health is getting better. You can see that they’ve gained control of their health.” – Lillian Reyes

“Everybody has a story. Everybody has a background. When I’m able, if there’s a situation that I’ve been through, I draw from that and the patients can feel it,” says Reyes. “They need to feel like the cards aren’t stacked against them. I celebrate every milestone with them, even just drinking 8 ounces of water. Instead of looking at the entire picture, I help them handle one thing at a time and build off that. A few months later, they’ve accomplished so much. I give them back that power and they take control. Seeing my 90-year-old patients report back, ‘Lillian, I stayed on my diet! I’m doing better!,’ that’s the more rewarding part for me.”

A history of selflessness

Reyes’ ability to help and connect with others dates to her teen years, when she served as a lifeguard. She also regularly translated for her father, a native of Puerto Rico, at doctors’ appointments. This experience allowed her to understand firsthand how confusing and stressful health care can be for individuals whose first language isn’t English, which is why she became a Certified Bilingual Interpreter. Now, she heavily advocates for the Spanish-speaking community. 

“If there’s a communication breakdown, then we’re not really helping our patients at all. They may be under the impression, ‘I’m only supposed to take this medication once,’ when they’re supposed to take it twice. Then we’re trying to figure out why their blood pressure isn’t controlled,” says Reyes. “Teach back is important. The doctor will give instructions to the patient, then they say it back to me so that we know they fully understand. It’s better than them trying to understand with limited English. I make doctor jargon comprehensible to them because this is their care and their lives.”

In addition to being a Certified Bilingual Interpreter, Reyes is a Certified Clinical Medical Assistant, Certified Phlebotomy Technician, Certified EKG Technician, Certified Mental Health First Aider, Diabetes Lifestyle Coach and Notary for the State of Delaware. Reyes is passionate about education and strives to learn as much as possible for the benefit of patients. Being well-informed about a plethora of areas allows her to draw from an ever-growing toolbox of knowledge when working with a diverse group of individuals.

“Every patient is different. Every situation is different. So, the more that I know, the better I can be for my patients,” says Reyes. “The Mental Health First Aider, I took that because I had a patient that was going through something and I felt like I wasn’t doing her justice. That really bothered me. I helped to the scope of my abilities at the time, but I felt like I could’ve done more. Now, I have the tools to help somebody, talk them down and get them to where they’re open to talk to the crisis line. We can even do a three-way call.”

Beyond the hospital walls

When she’s not furthering her education, Reyes’ personal time is spent finding fresh ways to help others. As an ambassador of the Community Health Workers Association of Delaware, she educates different organizations on the vital role CHWs play in health care and how their work differs from nurses and MAs. In fact, Reyes was honored at the Association’s Summit in October.

Additionally, Reyes teaches incoming freshmen at New Castle County Vocational Technical High School about the importance of health care and annual physicals—with an emphasis on teen pregnancy—as part of the school’s community give-back program.

“The students make diaper cakes, which are donated to Tiny Steps at Saint Francis and given to new mothers to ensure they have the essentials,” says Reyes. “I explain to the students that we never know what a mom is going through. They could be homeless, could have just lost their job, could be a single mom. They write notes to the moms. It teaches them how the little things you do can mean so much to someone.”

Reyes is excited about what the future holds regarding her work as a Community Health Worker. She’s ready to continue learning, advocating for her patients and building that trust, the latter of which is truly critical.

“Once that trust is there, it blooms. I call them my ‘onion patients’ because there’s always layers. We’ve got to get through that first until we get to the root. Once we get there, it’s endless,” says Reyes. “They love that they’re being empowered. That’s the beauty of it.”