Posts Tagged ‘hospice’

CHANS Hospice Partners with Theater Project

Wednesday, October 24th, 2012

In a special collaboration with The Theater Project, CHANS Hospice Care Program is a proud sponsor of Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl. In Eurydice, Sarah Ruhl reimagines the classic myth of Orpheus through the eyes of its heroine. Dying too young on her wedding day, Eurydice must journey to the underworld, where she reunites with her father and struggles to remember her lost love. With contemporary characters, ingenious plot twists, and breathtaking visual effects, the play is a fresh look at a timeless love story.

Eurydice is a professional ensemble production directed by Christopher Price, scheduled to run Friday and Saturday evenings at 8pm and Sunday at 2pm, October 26 through November 11. CHANS Hospice Program will share the stage during the Q & A sessions following the Sunday performances.

CHANS Hospice Program Partners with The Theater Project to Stimulate Public Dialog

CHANS Hospice partners with The Theater Project to present EurydiceIn a retelling of Orpheus, a Greek myth, Ruhl tells the story of death and loss from the perspective of Orpheus’ wife, Eurydice. Ruhl wrote the play in response to the loss of her own father, who died in 1994 of cancer. The play is about relationships, love, loss, communication, and finding the meaning between life and thereafter.

In the myth, Orpheus travels to Hades to reclaim his bride. Can he bring her from the underworld? Can we retrieve the dead? Love, loss, grief, hope and memory are part of the story.

After each of the three Sunday matinee performances there will be a panel of local community members that included local physicians, grief facilitators, chaplains, professors and direct care staff available to facilitate discussion about the topics and feelings arising from the performance.

Tickets are pay-what-you-want and for more information or reservations please visit www.theaterproject.com or call (207) 729 – 8584.

Hospice Care in Maine: When to Call for Hospice

Thursday, May 3rd, 2012

The Dear Abby column today had a question from a reader that tugged heartstrings. When to call for hospice? If you think you or a loved one may need hospice care in Maine, when to call for hospice becomes the all-important question.

When to call for hospice has to be a question answered after discussion with your doctors and with your local hospice care provider. Hospice care in Maine is often covered by Medicare when recommended by your physician (often because the patient has a terminal diagnosis and six months left in life.) but when to call for hospice is also about comfort, both for the patient and the caregivers. Hospice workers are experienced and skillful, as well as patient and respectful. They can help the patient feel more in control and better about their last days, and help the family understand the process and give their loved one attention as family members, not caregivers.

Hospice care in Maine provides clarity and hopeHospice care in Maine is provided by many health care organizations, including Androscoggin Home Care & Hospice, Hospice of Southern Maine, Chans Home Health Care at Mid Coast Health and other groups. Hospice care can be provided at home, and also in several dedicated hospice homes around the state, including Lewiston and Scarborough.

It’s never too eearly for hospice discussions when someone is facing a life-threatening illness or is nearing the end of life. Hospice can be arranged quite quickly. It’s much, much better to have the hope and help provided by hospice early enough to give the patient support and the family some assistance and relief. The whole point of hospice carein Maine is to give the patient some help and clarity about their life as it ends, and sometimes that gets increasingly difficult as aging progresses or disease take their toll.

Palliative Care Grant for HomeHealth Visiting Nurses

Wednesday, June 29th, 2011

Congratulations to HomeHealth Visiting Nurses, which received a  $7000 grant from the Hospice Fund of the Maine Community Foundation (MaineCF) to support their efforts to increase quality health care for Maine residents facing life-threatening illness or end-state chronic disease.

The money will allow HomeHealth Visiting Nurses to plan and implement palliative care nurse training, and offer palliative care outreach education workshops to students in nursing programs and practicing healthcare professionals around Maine.

Palliative care services focus on reducing the severity of disease symptoms and on promoting effective pain management. HomeHalth Visiting Nurses pallaitive care also focuses on matching treatment plans with patient/family goals, and on coordinating home healthcare with physicians. Palliative care patients don’t need to have a terminal diagnosis and they often are still receiving curative treatments.

HomeHealth Visiting Nurses provides home-based care for approximately 40,000 adults and children in Cumberland, York and southern Oxford Counties. Its mission is to help people be as healthy and independent as possible at home and in the community. You can find more information on the HomeHealth Visiting Nurses website  or by calling 1-800-660-4867.