News
Sports
Hospice of the Foothills will open Monday at its new, in-patient care center near Grass Valley after receiving a state license Thursday afternoon.
Nearly two years have passed since the $7.5 million facility was completed on donated land at 11270 Rough and Ready Highway.
“We're ready to accept patients as early as Monday,” an elated Executive Director Vanessa Bengston said. “We are looking forward to serving the community's needs and those of our patients.”
Earning a license from California's Department of Public Health took months of “meticulous” planning and a few last-minute steps, including a shopping trip Wednesday afternoon, Bengston said.
“We had a 3-ounce ladle, and we had a 6-ounce ladle,” Bengston said. But some of the facility's kitchen recipes call for 2-ounce servings for patients to meet daily nutritional guidelines, “so we had to go out yesterday for a 2-ounce ladle.”
When it comes to the rigor of California licensing standards and their guarantee of quality care, “that says it all,” Bengston said. “It's about (patients') health, safety and welfare.”
Staff started orientation training this week for six new employees, and three others have been hired in the past three months, Bengston said.
“Our staff is already on-call 24/7,” said registered nurse and Administrator Susan Juels. “We will now be caring for these patients in our home instead of their own.”
Family friendly
Hospice of the Foothills' Compassionate Care Home offers 12 rooms for terminally ill people who cannot be cared for in their own homes and for those with longer-term prognoses and advanced disease, Juels said.
Care includes pain and symptom management, medical treatments prescribed by the patient's doctor, a personalized diet plan, activities appropriate to patients' circumstances, and integration of family members and loved ones into the plan of care.
“The home is very family friendly,” said longtime supporter and former board member Charles Fowler. Fowler was on the facility design committee and chaired the capital campaign that raised $3.5 million to build it.
As western Nevada County's population continues to grow older — already among the oldest in California — demand for hospice services has grown. Hospice supporters identified the need for a residential care facility a decade ago, officials said.
“The opening of the Compassionate Care Home raises the bar on the provision of care and support services not previously available to our patients, their families and the community,” hospice Board of Directors President Stephen Haas said.
With 80 professional employees and a team of almost 500 trained volunteers, Hospice of the Foothills cares for hundreds of people yearly and has been the leading provider of end-of-life hospice care in the region for 31 years.
Amenities of the new, single-story, 17,000-square-foot facility include a living room overlooking a sunny patio and woodlands, a children's corner with books and games, and private family sitting and dining rooms.
Finishing touches will continue today, when Bengston expects to receive additional furniture that will make the facility even homier, she said.
For information on the Compassionate Care Home, care and support services, volunteer programs and how to support the hospice mission and programs, visit www.hofo.org or call (530) 272-5739.
To contact City Editor Trina Kleist, e-mail tkleist@theunion.com or call (530) 477-4230.
Nearly two years have passed since the $7.5 million facility was completed on donated land at 11270 Rough and Ready Highway.
“We're ready to accept patients as early as Monday,” an elated Executive Director Vanessa Bengston said. “We are looking forward to serving the community's needs and those of our patients.”
Earning a license from California's Department of Public Health took months of “meticulous” planning and a few last-minute steps, including a shopping trip Wednesday afternoon, Bengston said.
“We had a 3-ounce ladle, and we had a 6-ounce ladle,” Bengston said. But some of the facility's kitchen recipes call for 2-ounce servings for patients to meet daily nutritional guidelines, “so we had to go out yesterday for a 2-ounce ladle.”
When it comes to the rigor of California licensing standards and their guarantee of quality care, “that says it all,” Bengston said. “It's about (patients') health, safety and welfare.”
Staff started orientation training this week for six new employees, and three others have been hired in the past three months, Bengston said.
“Our staff is already on-call 24/7,” said registered nurse and Administrator Susan Juels. “We will now be caring for these patients in our home instead of their own.”
Family friendly
Hospice of the Foothills' Compassionate Care Home offers 12 rooms for terminally ill people who cannot be cared for in their own homes and for those with longer-term prognoses and advanced disease, Juels said.
Care includes pain and symptom management, medical treatments prescribed by the patient's doctor, a personalized diet plan, activities appropriate to patients' circumstances, and integration of family members and loved ones into the plan of care.
“The home is very family friendly,” said longtime supporter and former board member Charles Fowler. Fowler was on the facility design committee and chaired the capital campaign that raised $3.5 million to build it.
As western Nevada County's population continues to grow older — already among the oldest in California — demand for hospice services has grown. Hospice supporters identified the need for a residential care facility a decade ago, officials said.
“The opening of the Compassionate Care Home raises the bar on the provision of care and support services not previously available to our patients, their families and the community,” hospice Board of Directors President Stephen Haas said.
With 80 professional employees and a team of almost 500 trained volunteers, Hospice of the Foothills cares for hundreds of people yearly and has been the leading provider of end-of-life hospice care in the region for 31 years.
Amenities of the new, single-story, 17,000-square-foot facility include a living room overlooking a sunny patio and woodlands, a children's corner with books and games, and private family sitting and dining rooms.
Finishing touches will continue today, when Bengston expects to receive additional furniture that will make the facility even homier, she said.
For information on the Compassionate Care Home, care and support services, volunteer programs and how to support the hospice mission and programs, visit www.hofo.org or call (530) 272-5739.
To contact City Editor Trina Kleist, e-mail tkleist@theunion.com or call (530) 477-4230.
