Hospice Is More Than a Place

Fourteen years ago, my best friend was diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer—and it changed the direction of the rest of my life.

George needed hospice care and as a prominent business man, city attorney and devoted father, he had very high standards. When we researched hospice care, the same sentiment echoed over and over again: “Crossroads is the best,” people told us. “They’re amazing at what they do!” said friends and colleagues with experience in hospice care. We knew that Crossroads was the ideal place for George.

As I watched the Crossroads team care for George—the endless hours they stayed and kept him out of pain, the spiritual support and the comfort to me as his friend—I was amazed at the level of care provided to him in his home.

Before George’s illness, I spent many years in acute care on a cancer unit, but I had no idea that death could be handled with such grace and dignity. It was beautiful to see his boys and his loved ones surround him with love as he took his last breath. I was so deeply touched by watching George’s experience that I needed to make a change in my nursing career. Less than a year after George died, I joined this magnificent hospice company and have remained devoted to end-of-life care for the last 13 years.

At Crossroads, we believe that hospice is more than just a place. We feel that no person should die in pain, nor should a person die alone. Some hospice facilities do have a physical location—sometimes known as a “hospice house”— but we do not. In fact, 98 percent of Americans choose to die at home, according to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization.

Our patients tell us time and time again that they want to die at home, wherever that may be. We have listened to what our patients want, and we work hard to help them fulfill that wish. And that’s why we created unique programs like our Watch Program and our EvenMore Care program.