Palliative Care Services Available to Hospital's Seriously Ill Patients Through New Affiliation with HopeHealth
Sturdy Memorial Hospital in conjunction with HopeHealth Palliative Care, part of the HopeHealth family of services, will begin offering inpatient palliative care services to patients at Sturdy Memorial Hospital, according to a statement issued jointly by nonprofit entities.
“Touching and bettering the lives of people living with a serious illness takes dedicated services and special support,” said Diana Franchitto, president and CEO of HopeHealth, New England’s largest nonprofit, community-based hospice and palliative care organization with services in both Massachusetts and Rhode Island. “We are so pleased that Sturdy Memorial Hospital, a well-respected, well-known community hospital chose HopeHealth to offer palliative care services to patients and their families,” said Franchitto.
"Our collaboration with HopeHealth builds upon the Hospital’s existing commitment to its’ patients and families to provide high quality compassionate care along with much needed supportive services for those facing serious, chronic illnesses," said Robin Morris, vice president of clinical services and corporate integrity officer at Sturdy Memorial Hospital. "Our goal is to improve quality of life for our patients and their loved ones, by offering a coordinated, multidisciplinary team approach to managing their care.”
Palliative care providers work with seriously ill patients and families—those facing life-threatening illnesses such as heart disease, advanced cancers, and dementia—to ensure that their values, priorities and desires are respected and honored.
“Successful hospital-based palliative care requires mutual respect, clear communications among all involved parties and a shared commitment to help patients and their families achieve their desired goals,” said Dr. Jennifer Ritzau, HopeHealth’s medical director for palliative care. “We are thrilled that Sturdy recognizes that palliative care enhances the quality of life for seriously ill patients and we applaud them for expanding their services to include palliative care.”
“Sturdy’s leadership and highly dedicated care team strongly support programs that enhance quality of life for seriously ill patients and their families,” says Morris. “We look forward to providing this vital service to our valued community of patients.”
