Hospice Facts

Although the concept of hospice dates to ancient times, the American hospice movement did not begin until the 1960s. The first hospice in the United States, the Connecticut Hospice, began providing services in March 1974.

In 1982, Congress created a Medicare hospice benefit, reserving such services for terminally ill Medicare beneficiaries with life expectancies of six months or less “if the disease runs its normal course.”

**Information was provided by the NAHC

Volunteering

Bluewater Hospice volunteers are called Blue Angels and are the backbone of any hospice. They are an irreplaceable part of our program. Across the U.S., over 100,000 people volunteer and donate millions of hours serving terminally ill patients and their families.

Volunteers serve as part of a regularly scheduled system and provide the following:

Support services - companionship, friendly visiting, active listening, bedside sitting, letter writing.

Sharing hobbies and special interests -- reading, gardening, listening to music, sports, travel, crafts, etc.

Assisting with errands - grocery shopping, picking up prescriptions and supplies, banking.

Transport patient/family - appointments, shopping, social outings.

Homemaking tasks - light housekeeping, dishes, laundry, meal preparation, child care.

Please contact our Hospice team to become a part of this infinitely rewarding program. Your selfless contribution will allow those in need to live with a bit more comfort.