Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in West Virginia, second only to cancer. Advanced heart disease causes great suffering and many would benefit from the specialized support that hospice offers. But people with advanced heart disease Read more…
What matters most to you? Being at home, being comfortable, having time to say goodbye and/or having support for your family? When I was asked recently ‘what is a good death?’ and ‘what does death with dignity really mean?’ I Read more…
The National Hospice Organization has a new Advocacy Toolkit that can be widely shared. This includes tips on how to be an effective advocate and do’s and don’t’s when using social media to advocate. This toolkit comes at just the Read more…
Governor Justice has asked the WV Health Care Authority to change the certificate of need formula as a way to promote more competition between hospices and to increase access for West Virginia residents. Some think it should be higher Read more…
West Virginia is implementing new policies to limit opioid prescriptions. Opioids include drugs like hydrocodone and oxycodone. The new law exempts cancer patients and patients receiving hospice or palliative care, who may need these strong pain medications. Even though these Read more…
When someone in our family was recently diagnosed with dementia, I found out that many people did not know that this would get progressively worse and eventually become terminal. Dementia causes great sadness in families and the kind of support Read more…
Raising Awareness of the Benefits of Hospice and Palliative Care Hospice Council of West Virginia Celebrates November’s National Hospice and Palliative Care Month (Charleston, WV) – Hospice is high-quality care that helps patients and families to live as fully as Read more…