Maryland-based Hospice of the Chesapeake has unveiled a new Advanced Lung Care Program.

The hospice and palliative care provider developed the program in partnership with the American Lung Association and the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI). The initiative is designed to provide specialized care for patients experiencing severe symptoms from chronic lung disease, which includes chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic bronchitis, emphysema, asthma, cystic fibrosis, bronchiectasis, pulmonary fibrosis, sarcoidosis and pulmonary hypertension.

In making the decision to launch this program, Hospice of the Chesapeake “took the pulse of the community,” according to the organization’s Vice President of Medical Affairs & Hospice Medical Director Dr. Sonja Richmond.

“That is what led Hospice of the Chesapeake to really invest in a program that would be beneficial to the community that we’re serving, our referring partners and enhancing our partnerships,” Richmond told Hospice News. “We are looking at the increase of hospitalization utilization. We’re looking at the long length of stay in the hospital. We look at how to facilitate a safe discharge to a place where our patients consider home and ways that we can support their needs.”

Hospice of the Chesapeake, a nonprofit, provides hospice and palliative care across four Maryland counties.

Lung care is a growing need. More than 34 million people in the United States suffer from chronic lung disease, according to the American Lung Association. This leads to hundreds of thousands of hospitalizations annually and tens of billions in health care costs.

Hospice of the Chesapeake’s lung program includes a full interdisciplinary team with a physician, nurse case manager, aides with specialized end-of-life and disease-specific training, volunteers and a psychosocial team, Richmond said. It also includes medication management, durable medical equipment and a high-flow oxygen program.

A growing number of operators have developed programs tailored to patients with specific diagnoses, providing specialized care tailored to their specific needs. Examples include dementia, heart failure and other cardiac conditions, as well as diseases of the lungs.

In February Hospice of the Chesapeake launched a new disease-specific hospice program designed to better support patients with cardiac conditions, developed with the American Health Association and NPHI. Late last year, the organization also put forth a new dementia care program providing improved emotional, educational and practical support for patients and their caregivers as their conditions progress.

“The programs that we are involved with and have developed keeps us at the forefront. Our referral sources know that we are always engaged in making things better and brighter, not only for the patients we care for but our referral sources,” Richmond said. “We are looking for ways to partner as advancements in health care continue to change. Nothing remains constant and it’s important for us to remain that differentiator, to understand that changes will occur and it’s important for us to stay with and ahead of it all so that we too can play an integral role.”