When Hospice of the North Shore, based in Danvers, acquired Partners Hospice in 2011, it caused some confusion.
First, there was the new name, Hospice of the North Shore Greater Boston.
Not only did the change “tack five syllables onto our name,” said Diane Stringer, the nonprofit’s president and chief executive, it left people unclear on where they fit into the organization’s service area.
“It became increasingly clear we needed to look at the name and the brand,” Stringer said. “It required us to step back and take a look at who we are as an organization.
“Many people don’t fully appreciate the depth and breadth of our services. Our care is multidimensional.’’
Stringer said the key is “providing the right care in the right place at the right time.”
To highlight those service choices, the organization — which is marking its 35th anniversary — is changing its name to Care Dimensions as of Jan. 1.
“Care Dimensions is hospice, palliative care, and support services,” Stringer said. “We are trying to reflect a broader array of services we offer, and position the organization for the future.”
J. Donald Schumacher, president of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization,
said the new name is a good choice.
“It opens the opportunity for them to remain a hospice while providing increasing services,” he said, and noted that he knows of “probably 10 to 15 hospices that have changed their names with the same intention.”
The agency, based on Sylvan Street in Danvers, provides care for people at the end of life in its Kaplan Family Hospice House on Liberty Street, as well as in hospitals and other facilities. But, Stringer said, “We know people with advanced illness want to be at home.” That’s where its palliative care program, which at any time is serving about 200 patients, comes in.
“They are people who for whatever reason aren’t ready for or needing hospice care, but they have advanced progressive illness and need pain and symptom management,” she said. “And they need help clarifying their goals for care, and what to expect as the illness progresses.” Such patients might have dementia, cancer, or cardiac, respiratory, or neurological disease.
The program also provides care to people with developmental disabilities as they age, and supports patients’ families and caregivers.
Stringer said the organization is adapting technologies “to help augment the touch our staff provides.” Telehealth, as it is known, uses electronic information and telecommunications to provide patient monitoring and clinical health care from a distance. The agency offers complementary art, music, and pet therapy, as well as massage and Reiki treatments.
“Our goal is to help families care for their loved ones at home with the support, education, and wrap-around services we can provide to help reduce rehospitalizations and emergency room visits, because we know that is not what people want,” Stringer said.
Hospice and palliative care for infants and children is also a focus.
Last year, Dr. Tamara Vesel, a nationally recognized specialist in pediatric palliative care, joined the agency as medical director of pediatric services.
The organization’s Bertolon Center for Grief Healing, adjacent to the Kaplan facility in Danvers, provides bereavement support and counseling for adults and children. It also helps communities deal with loss, as it did recently when a teacher at Danvers High School was killed.
The organization also provides educational programs to professionals, and family and community members.
Stringer hopes the new name brings an awareness of what being a hospice organization means.
“It is not necessarily about just giving care at the very end,” she said. “It’s about helping people live as fully as possible in their final months.”
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