Learn how one funeral home used the Planning Center to connect with families and hospice programs in her community. Take a tour of Passare today!

By Kelly Gilgenbach, Vice President of Sales

Your families depend on you to help them through a time of loss. They also depend on nurses, clergy, and other medical staff before the loss occurs.

Since families rely on the care and expertise of two different groups, those in the funeral profession should work with hospice programs to help imminent need families through grief and their transition after a loss. But just how many imminent need families are there? Take a look at the statistics below.

The Statistics

Approximately 75% of deaths in the U.S. occur outside of the home, and based on the latest CDC statistics:

• 47% of deaths occurred in a hospital or medical facility

• 22% of deaths occurred in a nursing home or long-term care facility

• 25% of deaths occurred at home

In 2017, 1.1 million Medicare beneficiaries died in hospice care (NHPCO Report), meaning that 39% to 40% of all deaths in the U.S. occur under hospice care. Based on this fact, those in the funeral profession must learn how to collaborate with medical teams to provide a comprehensive and supportive system of care for families at the end of life.

This article will explain how one funeral home developed a program to collaborate with hospice workers to provide better communication and enhanced care to families.

One Funeral Home’s Experience

Rader Funeral Home in Longview, Texas, noticed a disconnect between funeral homes and hospice programs. Community Relations Coordinator Erika Rader worked to develop a hospice outreach program, and she shares her tips below:

Tip #1: Connect with Hospice Programs in Your Community

Erika shared how presentations and volunteering helped her connect with hospice programs in her community. Read more

Tip #2: Show Passare to Hospice Care Providers

Erika explained how sharing Passare with hospice centers generated more conversations about how the platform helps families. Read more 

Tip #3: Enhance Service to Families

Erika recalled how Passare’s easy-to-use software made her staff open to the idea of using this new technology in their funeral home. Read more 

Tip #4: Increase Opportunities for Collaboration with Hospice Nurses

The Rader family knew that Passare would help them increase their efficiency as an organization and that many families would probably find value in the Planning Center, especially if they were out-of-town families. But, as Erika pointed out, perhaps one of the most surprising aspects of Passare was how the directors were able to enhance their service to families and increase collaboration with caregivers and hospice workers. Erika said:

“The Planning Center takes a lot of stress off the family, and then our directors are able to focus even more on how we can best serve the family. When our families’ time is refocused, then our directors are able to give better quality care to those families. Some families have even added their hospice nurse into the Planning Center because the nurses are so close to the patient at the end of life. And to me, that's something really special because the families might not have known how to incorporate the hospice nurse or the caregiver. Or, they might not have thought about it, but with Passare, it just opens up a lot of possibilities and frees up a lot of time. Families are able to think a little bit more about what they want, and they’re able to bring that hospice nurse into the process in a way that's convenient for the families and for the hospice nurse.”

Collaboration is easy with Passare’s Planning Center! Like Erika said, you can:

• Show the Planning Center to families and explain how they can use it whenever and wherever is most convenient for them.

• Offer to invite the family’s hospice nurse to collaborate.

• Tour the Planning Center if you haven’t already so that you can explain it to families.

Thanks for these great tips, Erika! In the next article, we will look at how you can provide a best-in-class service to families and become the leading provider of service in your community.

For more information about Erika’s journey with hospice collaboration, click HERE to watch this webinar.

This article was just an excerpt of a longer case study eBook. Download the FREE eBook, with even more tips for growing community connections with hospice workers!