Hospice Facilities Launch Amid Shuttering Programs

Sarah Bush Lincoln Opens New Hospice

Illinois-based Sarah Bush Lincoln Hospice recently opened a new inpatient facility.

Located in Mattoon, Illinois, the Willow Breeze Hospice House features eight patient rooms with private bathrooms. Both adult and pediatric hospice patients are eligible to receive general inpatient care (GIP) at the center. Sarah Bush Lincoln announced the unveiling of the facility last November.

The hospice provider is part of the Sarah Bush Lincoln Health System, which opened in 1977. The health system also operates three hospitals and more than 57 medical clinics across 10 counties in Illinois.

“We are pleased to open Willow Breeze following 18 months of construction,” said Jenn Roberts, Sarah Bush Lincoln Hospice’s executive director, in an announcement. “We believe our patients and their loved ones will enjoy the tranquility of the entire home.”

The inpatient center features family quiet rooms that accommodate overnight guests, a communal kitchen and coffee bar, library and work spaces, a chapel and an activity room. A walking path and a pond surround the facility, as well as a covered outdoor patio area.

Sarah Bush Lincoln Hospice received the green light last April to renovate the structure on a local hospital campus. Construction began in the spring of 2022. The center has been six years in the making. Bereavement counseling will be available to families at the center for 13 months following the death of a loved one, as well as respite services for caregivers.

The center is designed for hospice care that addresses the unique needs, personal preferences and cultural beliefs of various community members at the end of life, according to Roberts.

“Our staff encourages our patients to share their life stories, hobbies and interests so we can create moments of joy and meaning,” Roberts said. “We work together to provide a holistic approach to address all aspects of well-being.”

PeaceHealth Reopens Inpatient Center

PeaceHealth has reopened one of its inpatient hospice centers after a recent rebranding and partnership formed with Community Home Health & Hospice (CHHH).

The PeaceHealth Richard Nau Hospice House opened on Jan. 31 and is located in Longview, Washington. Patients will begin to receive services at the facility starting Feb. 5.

Formerly dubbed the Longview Hospice Care Center, PeaceHealth took over the operations at the 12-bed inpatient facility through a partnership with CHHH formed last spring. CHHH sought to partner with PeaceHealth after selling off its outpatient home health and hospice business line, according to an announcement.

“We are honored and grateful that Community Home Health and Hospice selected PeaceHealth as their preferred partner to carry on their long-standing reputation of providing excellent hospice care in the community, preserving the legacy they have built over the last 45 years,” Cherelle Montanye, PeaceHealth St. John’s chief administrative officer, said in a statement.

Based in Vancouver, Washington, PeaceHealth provides hospice, palliative, primary and pediatric care, along with home- and community-based care and behavioral health, among other services.The nonprofit health system operates 17 locations in Alaska, Oregon and Washington, including critical access hospitals and medical centers and clinics.

Patients at the reopened inpatient hospice will receive 24/7 end-of-life care.

“Our dedicated, around-the-clock care team is ready to provide a warm, calming place for patients and their loved ones at [the] end of life,” said Gurpreet Dhillon, hospice director at PeaceHealth. “We recognize how important hospice care is to the community.”

McLaren Health Shutters Inpatient Hospice

Michigan-headquartered McLaren Health recently announced plans to close one of its inpatient facilities.

The McLaren Hiland Cottage Hospice House is located in Petoskey, Michigan. Services at the center include GIP, routine and respite hospice care. The inpatient is anticipated to discontinue services effective March 1, despite community outcries, reported local news.

The facility features seven private patient rooms in a homelike environment, each with its own kitchenette and half bathroom. Amenities at the center include family gathering areas, a children’s playroom, a meditation room, family dining area, a patient spa and an outdoor screened sun porch.

“We are committed to maintaining our excellent hospice services for northern Michigan residents and are thankful for our community partners passionately working together to ensure our community has access to hospice service,” Cynthia Tomlinson, vice president of hospice and palliative care at McLaren Health Management Group, told local news. ”At this time, community-based hospice care is the most patient-centric and sustainable method to care for hospice patients, and we’re committed to our staff and community as we focus on this transition.”

McLaren Health operates 15 hospitals, nine medical clinics and more than 100 primary care locations in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. The health system provides hospice, home health, and infusion and pharmacy services, along with emergency and ambulatory care. McLaren Health provided about 205,432 days of hospice care in 2023, according to its annual report. The health system reported $6,61 billion in revenue last year.

McLaren Health announced shuttering services at the hospice facility last October, citing a consolidation of its inpatient hospice services. All patients and interdisciplinary staff at the center will be transitioned to other facilities. The inpatient closure follows another that McLaren Health announced in September when it shuttered operations at a facility in Cheboygan, Michigan.

Local residents have formed a community group, Friends of Hiland Cottage Hospice, advocating for the hospice center to remain open. The group has public demonstrations spanning back to September 2023.

“While we’re disappointed with Hiland Cottage’s closure, we recognize its continued operation is currently unsustainable,” representatives of the Friends of Hiland Cottage said in a statement. “We look forward to continued partnership with McLaren to evaluate options for maintaining residential hospice and to meet the demand for affordable, compassionate end-of-life care in our community.”

Marshfield Medical Closes Hospice, Home Health Program

Wisconsin-based Marshfield Medical Center-Park Falls Home Health And Hospice is set to shutter services on March 1, citing limited resources.

Marshfield Medical Center-Park Falls Home Health And Hospice is located in Phillips, Wisconsin. The home health and hospice provider also offers palliative care consultations, bereavement services and community education services, and is part of the Marshfield Clinic Health System.

The health system is working with other local providers to continue home health and hospice services for patients in the community.

“We’re proud members of the community, and while these services will cease, we continue to provide primary, specialty and hospital care throughout the region,” a Marshfield Clinic spokesperson told Becker’s. “We are committed to supporting our patients and employees as we transition our home health and hospice resources.”

The hospice and home health facility closure follows news of Marshfield Clinic’s discontinued oral surgery services due to clinical capacity pressures, effective Jan. 31, according to Becker’s.

Marshfield Clinic Health System provides care in Wisconsin and in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The health system operates more than 60 medical clinic locations and 11 hospitals as well as the Marshfield Children’s Hospital and the Marshfield Clinic Research Institute. The health system’s Marshfield Clinic Division of Education has an annual census of roughly 900 medical students.