Thank You for Supporting Hospice & Palliative Care

Thanks to generous donors like you, in the past two years PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center Foundation has distributed more than $652,000 to support a full spectrum of care for seriously, chronically and terminally ill patients in our community. Philanthropic support of our Hospice and Palliative Care programs enables patients to find relief from the symptoms and stress of serious illness, improving the quality of life for both the patient and their circle of loved ones.

Most often, palliative care is delivered alongside curative treatment. As curative options narrow, patients receive earlier hospice referrals so they can fully benefit from the many services that Columbia Hospice and the Ray Hickey Hospice House have to offer. Our multi-disciplinary Palliative Care team helps with symptom management, provides emotional support, and facilitates conversations around future healthcare needs.

Palliative Care has already made a tremendous difference in our community, and we are preparing for future growth. Our 65-and-over population is growing, which means that more neighbors and loved ones are at risk for serious and complex illnesses. PeaceHealth is investing significant time and resources to ensure that our Palliative Care programs across the PeaceHealth system continue to grow and improve as we provide compassionate care to those in need.

Thank you for believing in our vision of empowering seriously and terminally ill patients to live as well as possible, for as long as possible. We are so grateful!

How Palliative Care is Making a Difference

At age 83, Helen had just undergone a very large, complicated surgery to address a long-term, chronic health condition. Our palliative care nurse met with Helen and her daughter to explain the path to recovery and the level of participation that full rehabilitation would require. He was able to help them refine their heathcare goals and articulate what quality of life meant to them. When Helen took a turn for the worse a few months later, she and her daughter agreed that another major surgery was not the best option. Instead, Helen chose comfort care and is now living her final days to the fullest with the help of our in-home hospice team.

Research tells us that chronic diseases account for nearly 75% of aggregate healthcare spending in the USA. To ensure that patients understand their options for medical interventions, our palliative care team facilitates conversations around future healthcare needs and wishes. Their expert symptom management relieves pain and discomfort, helping to reduce emergency room visits and repeat hospitalizations.

Palliative Care is so helpful to patients that 93% of people who have received it are likely to recommend it to others. Your support is truly making a difference in our community. Thank you!

Recent Fund Distributions

made possible by your gifts

 $240,000 for Quarterly Hospice Program Support

 $346,582 for Palliative Care Staffing

 $1,103 for Palliative Care Activity Cart Items

 $15,000 for Personal Protective Equipment

 $13,921 for Hospice Massage Therapy

 $16,245 for Hospice Music Therapy

 $6,950 for No One Dies Alone Program

 $10,638 for Hospice Patient Supplies and Assistance

 $1,668 for Hospice Family Educational Books

Because of You

Your gifts enable our Hospice and Palliative Care teams to bring comfort, control, dignity and peace to patients and families when they need it the most. Assistance from a skilled team can reduce symptom distress by up to 66%, leading to much improved quality of life. The education and practical assistance our teams provide help patients and their loved ones to feel less fearful and more in control to shape the life that is most meaningful to them.

158 average monthly palliative care referrals in FY22

18% increase in palliative care referrals over FY21

2,157 hospice patients served in FY22

$652,107 distributed to support Hospice and Palliative Care in FY21 & FY22

You Bring Peace and Comfort to Hospice Families

I can’t thank you enough for your generosity and support for PeaceHealth Columbia Hospice. For many, it is hard to bear witness to families and patients dealing with grief. I appreciate so much your willingness to not just ‘see’ our patients’ and families’ grief, but to reach out and help them as well. In hospice, our amazing providers and staff find so much meaning in making this time of transition as positive and supported as possible. We would never be able to do the job we do without your help.

— Jasmine Chowdhury, MD Hospice Medical Director

With your help, PeaceHealth Columbia Hospice serves more than 370 patients and families every day, including 20 patients at Ray Hickey Hospice House and 350 in our community program, which covers Clark, Skamania, Cowlitz and Wahkiakum counties. We are very excited that donors like you are making it possible to remodel and upgrade the Ray Hickey Hospice House, which has been open for 18 years now. Upgrades include new fencing and a beautiful garden area to allow our patients’ beds to go outside.

Your gifts provide housing, groceries, gas cards, clothing and hygiene items for homeless patients and others who struggle financially. They soothe patients with music, massage therapy, and companion pets. They enable us to offer education to staff and hospice families. Because of you, no one who needs compassionate hospice care will ever be turned away.