Photo Courtesy of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center
Jamaica Hospital’s hospice care unit is set for a $1.2 million renovation.
By Michael V. Cusenza
Civic leaders and elected officials last week joined the administration and Board of Trustees of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in breaking ground on the hospice care unit renovation project.
The facility, which opened in 2010, will undergo a $1.2 million facelift – including its name.
“Today we officially broke ground for what will be our newly redeveloped hospice care unit: the Ferrara Family Center for Hospice Care!” JHMC wrote on its Facebook page last Thursday.
Construction is set to begin next month on the unit that has been named in honor of hospital trustee Joseph Ferrara, whose wife required palliative care in 2007.
Jamaica Hospital opened what it characterized as its “much-needed” hospice care unit six years ago, in collaboration with the Hospice of New York. The four-bed inpatient unit, managed by JHMC’s Palliative Care Program, currently consists of a team of physicians, nurses, social workers, and dieticians, who offer pain management services, skilled nursing care, medical social services, medical supplies, and counseling to hospice patients. In addition, they provide spiritual support and bereavement services to the families of patients.
“The goal of the unit is to ensure that end of life patients receive comfort care,” said Dr. Alan Roth, chairman of Jamaica Hospital’s Department of Family Medicine and Palliative Care Medicine. “We offer our patients a home-like environment that addresses their medical and spiritual needs; as well as the emotional needs of their families.”
The hospice unit boasts extra large private patient rooms with brand new furniture and amenities. The unit also includes a family meeting room and lounge. Overnight accommodations and meals are also available for family members of hospice patients.
According to the hospital, individuals who meet the following criteria are eligible for admission into the hospice unit: have less than two weeks to live; whose medical needs cannot be cared for at home; and/or can be medically stabilized to continue care at home.
According to the National Library of Medicine, hospice care is end-of-life care. A team of healthcare professionals and volunteers provides medical, psychological, and spiritual support; and the goal of the care is to help people who are dying have peace, comfort, and dignity. The caregivers try to control pain and other symptoms so a person can remain as alert and comfortable as possible. Hospice programs also provide services to support a patient’s family. Usually, a hospice patient is expected to live six months or less.
