She was facing eviction from her landlord because she was unable to pay rent and struggling financially. She had to quit her job to care for her ailing child. Because of the community’s support, Hospice & Community Care was able to provide her with baby formula, a needed baby scale, grocery gift cards and other necessary items through our Clinical Patient Special Needs Fund.

His family was informed that his end-of-life care would no longer be covered by Medicare. Thanks to the generosity of the community, he was able to remain at our Bob Fryer & Family Inpatient
Center and get the care and comfort he so urgently needed.

Caring for his wife was starting to take its toll on him physically and mentally. He needed a few hours a week to run errands to have some sense of ‘normalcy’ in his life. Due to the community’s support, we were able to provide respite care for him using a Hospice & Community Care volunteer— giving him peace of mind.

We hear stories like these every day. And, we are so fortunate to be able to be a part of and serve a community that is so invested in giving back. Your dollars make a significant impact on the lives of our patients, families and team members who care for them, and here’s how…

Cost of Patient Care — Uncompensated Care
Only a portion of the care that we provide is covered by insurance or Medicare, and we don’t turn patients away based on financial circumstances. In fact, Hospice & Community Care provided $1.5 million in uncompensated services last year.

Gifts made to cover the cost of uncompensated care will ensure that we are able to provide services that our patients and families need the most. These include physician services, nursing care, chaplain support, social work services, prescription medications for symptom control or pain relief, durable medical equipment, and grief and loss counseling for both the patient and family, before and after their loss.

Clinical Patient Special Needs Fund – Personalized Care for All
The Clinical Patient Special Needs Fund is an open-ended fund created to help address patient and family needs that fall outside of ever-changing insurance guidelines and for those who lack other financial resources. This fund helps to reduce stressors for the patient and family and helps provide dignity for the patient at end of life.

In 2018, we incurred more than $75,000 in expenses for the specialized equipment, supplies and services that the Clinical Patient Special Needs Fund helps to provide.

Grief Support – Meeting the Needs of the Community
To meet the growing needs of the community requires us to adapt and change. The team at our Pathways Center for Grief & Loss continues to have their fingers on the pulse of what’s happening locally and nationally, so that they can provide support to meet those needs – thanks to the generosity of our community. The Pathways Center for Grief & Loss is entirely funded through donor support.

Contributions enable us to provide a safe place for families coping with the loss of a loved one due to overdose and substance abuse, a need that has become more prevalent in recent years. We have partnered with a local G.R.A.S.P (Grief Recovery After a Substance Passing) program to hold a monthly support group at the Pathways Center.

Compassionate Care When It’s Needed Most
Did you know that approximately 20% of our patients are Veterans? Hospice & Community Care recognizes the unique end-of-life needs of Veterans in our community and educates staff and volunteers to commemorate a Veteran’s history and be cognizant of the emotional, spiritual and physical associations that accompany serving our country. The specialized support that Hospice & Community Care provides can be especially meaningful to Veterans at end of life. It is common for Veterans at this stage to face unique issues related to their military experiences that possibly have never been addressed with their families. Compassionate support is provided not only for patients but also for their family members.

Community support allows Hospice & Community Care to continue to provide personalized care and comfort to all of our Veteran patients and give them the compassion, honor and respect they deserve.

Volunteers – Giving Back with Time & Talents
Support is also more than monetary. We are fortunate to have more than 1,100 volunteers who support our patients and families every day. These men and women give so freely of their time and talents to help provide care and comfort to our patients and families.

Much of what we do and the services that we provide depend on the support of the community. In 2020, Hospice & Community Care will celebrate 40 years of serving South Central Pennsylvania. That longevity would not be possible without all of you. Thank you for your continued support of Hospice & Community Care.