Hospice and Palliative Care Resources in Maryland

Hospice care empowers an individual to live their last season of life to the fullest, and on their own terms surrounded by those they love. Avila Home Care supports hospice care patients through our partnership with Gilchrist– in fact, about 1/3 of Avila’s clients are receiving hospice care. Avila also sponsors the vital advocacy and care resources of the Hospice & Palliative Care Network of Maryland.

Gilchrist
Gilchrist offers hospice and palliative care to anyone, regardless of their ability to pay. They serve adults as well as children in the Central Maryland communities of Baltimore City and Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, and Howard Counties.

Gilchrist hospice care can be provided at one’s home, in long-term care, or in an inpatient Gilchrist setting (in Towson, Baltimore City, or Howard County). Whether an individual is facing end-stage diseases such as cancer, heart, lung, kidney, or life-limiting neurological diseases, Gilchrist’s team can be by your loved one’s side to support medical, social, emotional, and spiritual needs. Services include personal care, pain, and symptom management, medications, medical supplies, and equipment wherever your loved one is receiving care. Gilchrist also provides care to individuals with serious illnesses through its Elder Care Medical Program. Gilchrist provides counseling and support for family and friends of patients in Gilchrist’s care, as well as after a loved one has passed.

Gilchrist’s renowned End-of-Life Doula program provides additional bedside support during the last hours of a person’s life. This program started in 2010, and Gilchrist now has 75 trained doula volunteers who have supported nearly 900 families. The end-of-life doula volunteers at Gilchrist have undergone extensive training, and offer extra companionship and support in addition to services provided by the hospice team. To learn more about becoming a Gilchrist volunteer, visit Become a Gilchrist Volunteer and How You Can Help | Gilchrist (gilchristcares.org).

Camille Gustus, who receives care from Gilchrist shares, “Gilchrist is about living your best life toward the end of your life. Exactly what they promise to do is what they’re doing.” Watch a brief video featuring Camille and her beautiful story: Give to make a difference for our patients | Gilchrist (gilchristcares.org)

Hospice & Palliative Care Network of Maryland

A nonprofit trade membership association, the Hospice and Palliative Care Network of Maryland advocates for Marylanders and their families who are facing serious illness, death and grief. They work with their membership organizations to define and promote best practices for clinical and programmatic hospice and palliative care, and they advocate at the state and federal level in support of relevant legislation.

In their own words, they provide “support, resources, training, education and a legislative “voice” to their membership organizations.”

Helpful service directories can be found on their website. Here’s a link to their hospice directory: Find Local Care – Hospice & Palliative Care Network of Maryland (hnmd.org),

And a link to their palliative care directory: Find Palliative Care – Hospice & Palliative Care Network of Maryland (hnmd.org)

The Hospice & Palliative Care Network of Maryland has extended an invitation to their virtual annual conference, “Navigating the New Normal”. The conference is on November 3rd and 4th, and features four tracks of professional development: (1) Leadership, (2) Clinical/Palliative Care, (3) Psycho/Social and Spiritual, and (4) Billing, with keynote speaker Dr. Carla Cheatham, MA, MDiv, Ph.D., TRT. Conference details can be found at Hospice & Palliative Care Network of Maryland (https://bit.ly/3kI6yEa), and questions can be directed to Katherine Lally at katherine.lally@hnmd.org or call 410-891-5741.

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