SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Hospice Compassus program serving the Springfield and Osceola areas has achieved Level Three partnership with We Honor Veterans, a program of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to improve end-of-life care for American veterans.
We Honor Veterans provides educational tools and resources to help hospice providers promote veteran-centric educational activities, increase organizational capacity to serve veterans, develop and/or strengthen strategic partnerships, increase access and improve quality of care.
“We’ve found through research and clinical practice that military veterans assimilate their experiences not only in how they live outside of active service, but also in how their lives end. The better we understand those experiences, the better we are able to meet their unique needs with honor, sensitivity, and respect,” said Amy Winburn, Executive Director of the Hospice Compassus programs serving Springfield and Osceola.
NHPCO and VA invite hospice providers to pursue four levels of partnership with the We Honor Veterans program. The first level demonstrates a provider’s commitment to provide relevant education and training for staff and volunteers, and to identify patients with military experience. Subsequent levels require additional education and training, and other activities including community education and outreach to veterans organizations, establishing veteran-specific policies and procedures, and seeking local partnerships with veteran organizations.
“We intend to become a Level 4 Partner before the end of the year. We want patients and families to recognize that our staff is competent and prepared to deliver industry best practices for providing end-of-life care to veterans,” said Winburn.
NHPCO is the largest nonprofit membership organization representing hospice and palliative care programs and professionals in the U.S. The organization is committed to improving end of life care and expanding access to hospice care with the goal of profoundly enhancing quality of life for people dying in America and their loved ones.
The mission of the VA is to fulfill President Lincoln’s promise “To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan” by serving and honoring the men and women who are America’s veterans.
For more information about Hospice Compassus or its services, visit compassus.com or call (417) 882-0453.
