HOPEWEST

HopeWest's staff and volunteers are committed to providing the level of support and compassionate care each patient and family requires, regardless of ability to pay. HopeWest will be there for patients and families from the time of diagnosis until long after death for loved ones, especially children and teens.

In 1993, HopeWest (Hospice & Palliative Care of Western Colorado) was founded through the collaboration of five health care institutions to be a comprehensive, non-profit, community-centric hospice. It began serving Grand Valley communities with two employees caring for five patients from office space provided by the Veterans Administration in Grand Junction. During the last 21 years, the number of patients has grown from 200 patients served during 1993 to more than 2,350 patients in 2014. Our hospice census averages more than 400 patients served daily, plus more than 125 palliative care patients. Today, the organization impacts the lives of more than 5,500 people each year in five Western Colorado counties by providing comprehensive hospice, palliative care and grief related services from four locations in this 7,000-square-mile region. We are a community-based, 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, governed by a volunteer Board of Directors and founding President/CEO, Christy Whitney, RN, MS, CNAA.

HopeWest has become well-known for its innovations in end-of-life care directed at meeting the unique needs of those in rural and remote areas of Colorado. We stretch our organization to close the gaps in care when reimbursement is lacking, as well as develop new programs to serve the “un-served” and “underserved” throughout our region. And we collaborate with community partners to fill the needs of patients and their loved ones earlier in their illness with programs such as Living with Cancer – Transitions and Palliative Care. In our first 21 years, HopeWest has served more than 20,000 patients and family members with compassionate care teams dedicated to helping them cope with serious illness and grief.

In 2008, our organization achieved one of the dreams of our founders – the opening of a Hospice Campus in Grand Junction. Our 13 patient/family room Hospice Inpatient Care Center is an amazing facility and the first of its kind between Denver and Salt Lake City.

Our Open Access Policy means that we never turn away patients for hospice or palliative care, even if they have no means to pay. In addition, we serve the entire family, providing caregivers with crucial education and sustaining support. Our primary goal is to meet the complex needs of patients at life’s end and serve their families long after the patient’s death.

Our request is for funding to support our highly effective HopeWest Kids program that serves nearly 700 at-risk, grieving children each year throughout Western Colorado. This innovative, comprehensive, and effective program has changed the lives of 4,200 youths since 1997, whether or not their loss involved Hospice care and regardless of the families’ ability to pay. The program is funded 97% through philanthropy.

HopeWest provides comprehensive care and tremendous resources for our communities as they face the daunting stages of serious illness, death and grief.
• HopeWest Hospice - Hospice care helps those living with a serious illness and their families, focus on quality of life, comfort and control from the time of diagnosis through the final phase of life. In 2013, Hospice care was provided for 1,598 patients at home, in an assisted living facility, in a nursing facility or in a hospital.
• HopeWest Support – Grief is a natural and necessary process that occurs when we experience loss. We offer education, counseling and support to anyone in the community who has experienced a loss. In 2013, we served 5,587 individuals whose loved one died in Hospice or experienced a loss outside Hospice. Of those, 554 individuals participated in community grief support, education groups or individual counseling.
• HopeWest Care – Palliative care is for individuals who need care and support during their illness, but who are not hospice-ready or eligible. The program has a nationally recognized “virtually integrated” program with the VA Medical Center, features expert consultations from physicians board certified in palliative care, and a care coordination program. In 2013, 678 Transitions patients received care coordination and/or consults.
• HopeWest Inpatient Care Center - Provided 523 patients and their families with a comfortable, home-like environment for those final days or weeks of life in 2013.
• Open Access to Care – In 2013, $884,000 in unreimbursed care was provided.

HopeWest is a community-based organization governed by a dynamic and diverse18-member Board of Directors and President & CEO, Christy Whitney, RN, MS, CNAA. The Board is intimately involved in the organization’s vision and direction; 100 percent of its members contribute financially to HopeWest programs and campaigns. The Board Finance Committee is responsible for budget oversight.

Volunteers are the Heart of Hospice at HopeWest. In 2013, we had 1,273 active volunteers who worked for 82,231 hours in all departments of the organization. Our highly trained volunteers provide support to patients and families, work at Heirlooms for Hospice resale stores, provide office support, help with HopeWest Kids programs and camps, provide gardening services at the Hospice Care Center and assist with fundraising events.