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Mailing Address:
2205 - 2nd Street N.
Cranbrook, BC
V1C 3L4
Tel: (250) 426-4671
Fax: : (250) 489-1734 / 426-6
BCHPCA Components of Care
Administration
The program has been providing service in the community since 1985 and comes under the administration of the Cranbrook Health Council. The program employs a part-time Co-ordinator who is responsible for the development and implementation of the service in the area of client and family support and palliative and bereavement counselling care within the community and the health facilities; volunteer selection, training, assignments, in-service education and support; grief and bereavement programs; community library; community education and fundraising events. Funding sources are bingo revenue, United Way and private donations.
Volunteer Program
There are two groups of volunteers offering their services. Sixty-two volunteers help with fundraising and public relation events throughout the year. Hospice client volunteers (14) offer palliative counselling and bereavement facility. Several of the volunteers also help to co-ordinate the bereavement support groups. The volunteers are supervised and supported by the Hospice Co-ordinator. Training and in-service are part of the program.
Home Program
Hospice works closely with Home Care Nursing, Home Support and other service agencies, as part of the community health team which is providing palliative/bereavement support to a client within their own home. Clients are referred to Hospice and assessed by the Co-ordinator, with one-to-one volunteers being assigned, as requested.
Hospital Program
Two private rooms, plus a connecting family living area form the designated palliative care unit located on the third floor of the Cranbrook Regional Hospital. Hospice volunteers visit their clients while they are in the hospital.
Spiritual and Pastoral Care
There is a pastoral visitation program in the hospital, members of the Ministerial Association are available upon request.
Symptom Management
Individual physicians and either hospital or Home Care Nurses provide symptom management. A weekly meeting of hospital and community health providers provide a venue for discussions regarding palliative clients. The community/hospital Palliative Care Committee also meets throughout the year to discuss issues of support management.
Bereavement Program
The client volunteers offer bereavement support to their assigned families and individual bereavement counsellling is also offered by the Hospice Co-ordinator. The program has three grief support groups which are structured and offered free of charge. The Compassionate Friends and the Bereavement Support Group both meet on a monthly basis, while the Suicide Bereavement Support Group meets twice a month.
Education and Professional Training
Hospice facilitates seminars on “grief and bereavement” for groups within our community. Within Region #8, the various hospice groups jointly host a major regional conference on a variety of palliative/bereavement topics, with attendance by hospice volunteers, health professionals and the general public. The annual Christmas “Celebration of Life”’ event is attended by many people and is an excellent public awareness forum. The hospice library of books, audio and video cassettes is widely used and a mini library is also available in the palliative care unit.
Evaluation and Research
Monthly program statistics are kept and a three year plan for the program has been completed. Client survey evaluation forms for the palliative care unit were completed in 1998 with the data being compiled and acted upon. The palliative care unit committee has completed revisions to the palliative care unit policy and has also developed a palliative care matrix for community and hospital interdisciplinary usage.
Organization Mission Statement
Cranbrook Hospice is a community based program dedicated to providing individuals, their families and friends with supportive compassionate care while they are facing death and grieving. We believe that dying and grieving are a natural, integral part of life. Care is provided free-of-charge under the guidance of the Program Co-ordinator.
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