Open Arms Hospice

Open Arms Hospice offers bereavement services to our patients' families to help them cope with the feelings that accompany losing a loved one. With a holistic approach, our staff and volunteers are available to address all aspects of the stages of grief.

 

Our Bereavement Coordinator is a licensed counselor who communicates with loved ones for 13 months following a patient's death. With the assistance of hospice volunteers, the Bereavement Coordinator provides educational materials about the grieving process and periodically contacts patients' families with personal visits, phone calls or letters. Counseling services and referrals to other resources can be provided to families with special needs.

 

Our Bereavement Coordinator also offers early intervention to family members or caregivers who have a particularly difficult time with the impending loss of a loved one. The Early Bereavement Program helps caregivers and families deal with their grief prior to the loss of a loved one and may result in a referral for special counseling.

 

Open Arms Hospice also offers support groups that allow those in the grieving process to share feelings and discuss mutual issues. Suggestions about coping with grief responses are shared as members establish a "new normal."

 

Eight-week groups are available both during the day and in the evening throughout the year, and monthly group meetings also are available. The monthly meetings frequently feature speakers who address ways to cope with grief, including starting new hobbies and journaling.