Delaware Hospice

Delaware Hospice was founded in 1982 as Delaware's nonprofit Hospice care provider. Since the start, we have assessed the needs of our community and have expanded our services- we are more than Hospice. Our mission is to support every individual, family, and community with the most compassionate and expert care for serious illness. Delaware Hospice serves new castle, kent, and sussex counties in Delaware, along with southern chester and Delaware counties in Pennsylvania. Currently, 329 staff members and 329 volunteers passionately live that mission. Continued on schedule o.in addition to specific programs and services geared directly at our community's needs, Delaware Hospice operates the Delaware Hospice center in milford, de, as well as an inpatient unit at saint francis hospital in wilmington, de, providing a higher level of specialized care and symptom management: 24 hours a day, 7 days per week. Services provided at the Delaware Hospice center and the saint francis center include access to inpatient Hospice care, respite care, and a variety of support programs for patients and their families all in one location.delaware Hospice provides advanced illness management through its scope of programs and services. In addition to providing all the elements of a Hospice program (i.e., nurses, certified nursing assistants, social workers, grief counselors, chaplains, and volunteers), Delaware palliative helps seriously ill patients who are receiving active, curative treatment for illnesses such as cancer, congestive heart failure, parkinson's disease, alzheimer's disease and kidney failure. Delaware palliative offers symptom management support, facilitates goals of care discussions, and assists with advance health care directives. The palliative care team consists of a medical director, nurse practitioners, a social worker, and volunteers. In addition to in home care, Delaware Hospice and Delaware palliative implemented a telehealth option as an option for patients and families who were uncomfortable having visitors to their home during the pandemic.delaware Hospice gives back to its community in a variety of unique ways. The following is a list of programs provided with support from generous community donations to Delaware hospice:1) provider services is a team of professionals who are dedicated to educating professional and community organizations about our programs and services. Extensive outreach activities include virtual and in-person educational presentations to healthcare professionals and community organizations. Topics include: end-of-life care planning, living well with a serious illness, supporting the family and working caregiver, as well as other topics concerning living with a life limiting illness.2) new hope, a children's bereavement program is a completely unique program that brings hope to children struggling with loss. For more than 30 years, Delaware Hospice has been working with grieving children to express their feelings and to learn coping mechanisms. This education is conducted individually, in groups, in workshops, or at our 4-day summer camp held statewide. The new hope coordinators also consult with community groups, schools and other local agencies. Children's bereavement and grief counseling services are available not only to families who have chosen our Hospice services, but also to anyone in the community who may need them. As a result of the pandemic and the majority of children attending school remotely, new hope adapted its programs, support groups and camp to a virtual platform which if necessary, can be continued this year as well.3) the family support center was created in 2008 to meet the needs of caregivers and the bereaved in our community. Again, programs driven through the family support center are available to anyone in our community who are coping with illness or loss, not just families who have chosen our Hospice services. Over 100 programs, workshops, and social events are held throughout the year in Delaware, both virtually and in-person.4) Delaware transitions was established in 2003, this free service provides regular communication, connection to community resources, and volunteer assistance to people who are living with a serious illness.5) recognizing that many of our community members and medical professionals do not understand their end-of-life healthcare options. Delaware Hospice launched honoring choices Delaware. This unique program to our area infuses nationally recognized practices and approaches to help facilitate end-of-life decisions. Since 1982, as a community based nonprofit healthcare agency in the state of Delaware, we provide care regardless of a patients' ability to pay. Total Hospice patient days are 121,114 with an average daily census of 332 for fiscal year 2023. In addition, Delaware palliative served 455 patients and Delaware transitions served 215 patients in fiscal year 2023. Through all our programs and services, Delaware Hospice has touched over 6,800 people over the past year.