Your… wish • decision • choice • care • community connection

Acting as a resource to local and national
media and expanding the community’s
understanding of hospice care, several
interviews were conducted with our
staff for their expertise on end-of-life
issues. Chief Medical Officer, Charles
Wellman, MD, discussed myths about
artificial nutrition and hydration in a
NPR listener call-in. Time magazine
and CNN profiled our hospice families
and patients who were facing similar
decisions at the end of life. Bridget
Montana, Chief Operating Officer,
and Elizabeth Pitorak, Director of the
Hospice Institute, were interviewed on
advance directives and focus on active
dying. David Simpson, Chief Executive
Officer, spoke at the City Club of
Cleveland, the oldest continuous free
speech forum in the country, which
was simultaneously broadcasted on
WCLV 104.9 FM.
Lakeland Community College hosted
a community symposium with David
Simpson, CEO, Charles Wellman, Chief
Medical Officer, and Richard T. Spotz, Jr.,
Board member, to discuss end-of-life
issues with the public. Over 200 people
attended the program and more than
300 copies of our booklet, Courage In
Conversation, were distributed. Judge
Ted Klammer of the Lake County Probate
Court hosted the symposium
We are proud that our media
collaborations contributed to raising
awareness about hospice care and
end-of-life issues during the Terri
Schiavo crisis.
Care is provided to 6,019
patients and their families.
“A residential hospice is a refuge for patients
and their loved ones, a safe and gentle place where
those trained to ease suffering help everyone
involved work miracles large and small.”
–Connie Schultz, The Plain Dealer
Your wish
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