2020
ANNUAL REPORT
Suburban Hospice, Inc. ~ Serving Central Indiana ~
Kindness. One person at a time.
MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 2020 was a year of full of challenge and opportunity for Suburban Hospice. As with every part of the healthcare world, COVID 19 derailed our plans for expanding energetically to new areas in Central Indiana. We, like people and organizations all over the globe, moved into “problem-solving mode” as we did our best to safeguard our team and our patients and families as the virus spread rapidly across the country. The pandemic did impact the number and rate of admissions, as well as our ability to access many of the places we provide hospice care (such as long-term care facilities), but with creativity, perseverance, and a good dose of humor, we have been able to continue providing the kind and excellent care we are known for, one person at a time. In 2020, we had our triannual accreditation survey. The Accreditation Commission for Health Care (ACHC) conducted a three-day survey in only two days and found us to be “deficiency free.” This is rare finding and we could not be more pleased! We are proud of our team and the wonderful quality of care they provide. We were also proud to be awarded in 2020 the “Premier Performer Award” from SHP for the second year in a row for our CAHPS results. We achieved a ranking in the top 5% in the nation, scoring well above the national average in every measure. These measures are important to us because it shows that our patients and families truly feel the excellence and integrity we strive for in our care of every patient. We hope you enjoy this annual report from this surprising and unexpected year, and we, along with you, look forward to the promise of more normal life on the horizon. Best, Jeannie Crowe Executive Director
OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS Craig Felty Chairman
P. Jon Miller Treasurer
Tammy Strunk Vice Chairman
Dianne Osborne Secretary
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CARECARE CARE
WWW.SUBURBANHOSPICE.ORG
PATIENTS SERVED 375 patients and families
DREAMS REALIZED
2 great-grandchildren held 1 Honor Flight 1 fishing trip 1 trip to Florida 1 visit to the state fair 1 appearance in a Christmas pageant 1 model car completed Peace of mind Comfort Love
served 11,857 patient days 950 phone calls made to 288 patients 8,012 patient visits made in all service areas 285 families served in bereavement care
KINDNESS
SHARED Tea parties Birthday cakes A listening ear A strong shoulder Help with discomfort Words of encouragement Happy memories Peace of mind 2020 ANNUAL REPORT SUBURBAN HOSPICE 3
OUR MISSION & PROMISE At Suburban Hospice our tagline is “Kindness. One Person at a Time,” but kindness is more than our motto—it is the heart of our care. Our mission statement is:
“To be a high quality, compassionate provider of end of life care by alleviating suffering and improving quality of life through our kindness, our training and our calling to serve the patients and families we are privileged to know.”
CAREGIVER LIBRARY Our website includes a Caregiver Library that provides immediate, online help for family members needing assistance or clarification about topics and tasks related to end-of-life care. When caregivers have a question, they can simply go to www.suburbanhospice.org/caregiver-library/ to find information on more than 30 care topics. They of course can also call, day or night, and reach one of our experienced RNs. 4 2020 ANNUAL REPORT SUBURBAN HOSPICE
MEASURING QUALITY We love the work we do at hospice, and we work hard to ensure that we earn the trust of our patients and families every day. Each year we follow a Quality Assessment and Performance Improvement (QAPI) plan and work on Performance Improvement Projects (PIPs) in various areas of our care and practice. This enables us to continually assess in a data-driven way the services we offer and make improvements as needed so we are always doing our best to provide excellent care. Performance Improvement Projects for 2020 included: • • • •
Individualizing and personalizing patient care plans Conducting aide supervisory visits every two weeks Increasing the number of interdisciplinary visits when death is imminent Documenting aide visits in an accurate and timely way that matches the plan of care
In addition to these patient care and documentation measures, we have Performance Improvement Goals related to staff education, community service, ongoing bereavement, and more.
Hospice Compare There are measures of care we report to CMS that are reported publicly on the Hospice Compare site so that patients and families can compare the services in a specific area as they research which hospice service they want to provide care for their loved ones. Our data rates consistently and dramatically higher than other hospices serving our region (for example, 95% of people responding said they would recommend our hospice to someone they know; and being treated with respect, getting timely help, and emotional and spiritual support all rank above 92%). You can view and compare hospice benchmarks and results at www.medicare.gov/care-compare.
Superior Performer Hospice Awards In 2020, we were awarded—for the second year in a row—the SHPBest Premier Performer Award, rating us in the top 5% of the country in terms of family satisfaction for our services for 2019. The previous year, we qualified for the SHPBest Superior Performer award for achieving a satisfaction score that ranked in the top 20% of hospices in the U.S. The data is gathered directly from family responses to independent surveys that asked questions about the level of satisfaction with our care in a variety of areas. We work hard to ensure that our families receive the right amount of emotional and spiritual support and training in how to care for their loved ones’ needs at home. We communicate carefully about the side effects of medications and help our families know what to do when their loved one seems uncomfortable. These awards help us know that the care we provide to our patients and our families is making a difference. And that means everything to us! 2020 ANNUAL REPORT SUBURBAN HOSPICE 5
RATING OUR HOSPICE CARE
This table shows the results of CAHPS (Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) surveys family members complete after their hospice experience. These numbers reflect the care our team provided in 2020.
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A STORY OF GROWTH The story of how we came to be Suburban Hospice is one of cooperation and collaboration with independent hospitals in Indiana. We have been providing hospice care in our community, as Hancock Regional Hospice, for more than 30 years. In 2015, Hancock Health joined forces with Riverview Health and Witham Health Services to form a home health service known as Suburban Home Health. As a result of that relationship, Riverview and Witham both expressed a need to have a high-quality provider of end of life care for their patients. We formed Suburban Hospice to fill that need and officially expanded our coverage into Noblesville, Lebanon, and surrounding areas on October 1, 2020. The pandemic has had some impact on our growth, but we work with liaisons at Suburban Home Health, and we are actively serving patients and families in both areas. Full hospice services—with all interdisciplinary team members and full bereavement support—are open to all areas of our coverage, ensuring we provide the same expert, kind care no matter where we serve.
OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM
Dr. John Hittle, M.D. Medical Director Jeannie Crowe, MSW, LSW Executive Director Angela Green, FNP-BC, ACHPN Nurse Practitioner April Stillinger, RN, CHPN Director of Clinical Services Katherine Murray, M.Div Supportive Services Coordinator Kelly Duncan, RN Admissions Coordinator
SOCIAL MEDIA STATS In 2020: • Our posts were viewed 18,945 times on Facebook • We joined with health and community partners on Twitter • We posted educational and fun videos on our YouTube channel • We added a Caregiver Library to meet the needs of hospice families
Jennifer Dalton HR/Office Coordinator
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HOSPICE BY QUALITY THE NUMBERS MEASURING Even with a pandemic in full swing, we have been making good progress in our new areas of Noblesville and Lebanon. We began accepting patients in the new areas in November 2019 for Noblesville and January 2020 for Lebanon. In 2021, our patient census is sure to increase.
HEARTFELT THANKS “Thank you to all who helped us in the final days of Aunt Ruby’s life. You were all so helpful, kind, and compassionate.” “Thank you for caring for my mom and for letting me help with her last bath. You will never know how much that meant to me.”
Each patient and family is supported by our full interdisciplinary team and has access to RN case managers, hospice aides, social workers, chaplains, and volunteers. We make it a priority to fit our services and our schedules to the needs and preferences of our patients and families.
“I will always be thankful for the gift of time you gave Kathy and me.” “Just wanted to say thank you…we could not have done this without your help. Everyone was so kind, patient, and loving.” “Most of all, thanks for the kindness and respect shown to mom and our family. During a terrible time, we were given help in every area.” “David truly loved you and looked forward to your visits. Thank you for taking the very best care of my love and keeping him comfortable until his time to go home to his Heavenly Home!”
Our Interdisciplinary Team We meet weekly as a full team with all disciplines represented to discuss patient status and care. We also have morning meetings to discuss changes overnight, new admissions, deaths, and change in patient status. Our interdisciplinary team includes * Our medical director * RN case managers * Social workers * Volunteers * Pharmacy * Dietary * HR manager
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* Nurse practitioner * Hospice aides * Chaplains * Executive director * Clinical manager * Admissions coordinator * Home medical equipment
WE
OUR VOLUNTEERS
Volunteers are an important part of what we do as we provide kind, helpful, expert care for our patients and families. Our volunteers come from all walks of life. Some have lost a family member and experienced first-hand the blessing of hospice care. Others have retired and want to do something helpful and meaningful with their time. Still others are professionals, still working and raising families, and they choose to share their talents and expertise with hospice to “give back” in a purpose bigger than themselves. No matter why they are drawn to hospice, our volunteers all share a concern for the well-being of others and have a desire to do what they can to help. Volunteers help us extend the care of our hospice program by providing these services (and more): • • • • • •
In-person visits with patients in their home Pet visitation for residents in long-term care facilities Help running errands for patients and families who find it hard to get out Providing in-home respite care so the caregiver can take a break Assistance at events (especially our Circle of Life celebration) as we plan, prepare, host, and say thank you for the event Providing much-needed office support in preparing folders for new patients and filing documents
As part of regulations, Medicare requires that hospices match 5 percent of their direct care hours with hours worked by volunteers. This year, because of COVID-19, a waiver was given to release hospices from that requirement due to the risk of infection to the patients and volunteers. We are looking forward to the time it’s safe to start again!
Even with most of our volunteering on hold due to COVID-19, we used our time this year to prepare for when we can begin serving again in person. Our orientation and our annual training are now offered as online modules, and we streamlined and updated our volunteer application process. Are you interested in volunteering? Contact Katherine, our Volunteer Coordinator, at kmurray@suburbanhospice.org!
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COVID CHALLENGES AND BEYOND It’s safe to say that none of us expected a year like 2020. At the outset of the year, we didn’t anticipate a global pandemic or have any idea how much it would impact—in a very real and ongoing way—the way we live our lives each day. The pandemic changed so many things about how we gather as people; it caused us to get creative about the ways we stay in touch; it challenged us to find hope and connection when we were tempted toward upset and isolation. In hospice, we followed all CDC guidelines to ensure that our staff, volunteers, patients, and families stayed healthy and as safe as possible from the spreading virus. We wore masks and face shields, we observed virus restrictions on visitations, we helped ensure families had what they needed, and were careful with our own health and symptoms to safeguard against inadvertently carrying the virus into visits with us. We were aware of the increased feeling of isolation COVID-19 brought to so many who were required to stay home as they did their best to stay safe. We increased our supportive phone calls, Face-timed where we could, and came up with other creative ways to stay in touch, to boost spirits, and to provide emotional and spiritual care. Our nurses continued to make their scheduled visits, observing all possible precautions, wearing PPE, and teaching patients and families about virus safety and cleaning procedures. In our bereavement program, we added a new assessment that explores how the experience of COVID-19 might be impacting family grief. Many family members were separated from their loved ones in their last weeks or days of life, and that separation is often very hard on families. We developed a tool to help us identify where family members might need extra support as they grieved and created an online weekly grief group by Zoom (in part because our in-person grief group was put on hold for the safety of participants). COVID-19 challenged us to adjust our practice and invited us to come up with new solutions to unusual circumstances. But ultimately, this whole, difficult time has simply reinforced what has always been at the heart of our care: Kindness matters, perhaps now more than ever. Excellent care, provided faithfully and compassionately over time, can truly help improve the quality of life of our patients and their families. We still—and always--love what we do and feel blessed to serve those we meet each day.
WANT TO JOIN OUR GRIEF GROUP? Many of us are grieving right now and having support makes a big difference. Our grief group is open to all who are going through a time of loss. We meet by Zoom at 10:30am each Friday morning. To find out more, email Katherine at kmurray@suburbanhospice.org. We will be glad to have you join us!
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YOUR KINDNESS MATTERS! As a non-profit organization, Suburban Hospice relies on and greatly appreciates donations, which help us provide care in our community. We host one fundraising event during the year, known as the Circle of Life service, which is traditionally held the first Sunday of December each year. We love this event as do many in our area. It gives us a chance to see one another and do something at the holidays in honor of the loved ones we miss every day. This year, because of the pandemic, the service had to be cancelled, but we hope to be able to host it once again—even if virtually—in 2021. But your gifts to us—gifts of time, talent, as well as treasure—mean so much. And this year, when we’ve been given the opportunity to be creative, so many of you contributed in so many colorful ways! We received gifts of food (from entire breakfasts to pizza to cakes, cookies, and more), gifts of masks (much appreciated! And used!), to financial donations that helped us continue to provide day to day support for our families. We received donations of blankets (back before full virus precautions kicked in), lots of prayer support, and countless cards and notes from you all sending encouraging words and expressions of gratitude and love. Every single bit of it, no matter how small, was appreciated!
HOW YOU CAN HELP If you’d like to make a donation to Suburban Hospice, you can make your donation easily and securely. You can send a check to Suburban Hospice, Inc., at 801 N. State Street, Greenfield, IN, 46140. You can also make a secure donation online at https://www.hancockregionalhospital.org/hrhdonations/. and in the Designate Your Gift line, choose Suburban Hospice. You can also help us spread the word by following us online and sharing our posts! Our hospice website is www.suburbanhospice.org, our Facebook page is www.facebook.com/SuburbanHospice-100440221405091, and our Twitter account it @suburbanhospice. Thank you!
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801 N. State Street Greenfield, IN 46140 (833) 888-7222 www.suburbanhospice.org
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