Excerpt from: McKnight's (click for full article)
n 2006, while awaiting the completion of the physical Caregiver Center (which opened in November 2007), we first developed the counseling program; free of charge, this program provided emotional support and advice for family caregivers from a professional social worker and trained volunteer coaches. We got referrals from doctors and nurses who recognized that they could use help in dealing with families of ailing loved ones. Among other topics, we provided guidance on end-of-life issues, health care proxies, discharge planning and how to talk to children about illness. The success of the program was apparent early on, by the appreciation from families and from the hospital staff. It was also very gratifying to see that the patient-satisfaction surveys reflected positive growth, which, of course, made the hospital administrators pleased.
The award-winning Ken Hamilton Caregivers Center at Northern Westchester Hospital, now in its seventh year, was the first of its kind in the New York Metropolitan area. Today, the Center has become a model for other hospitals around the country, including Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY; Overlook Hospital, Summit, NJ; Mid-Michigan Medical Center, Midland, MI; White Plains Hospital, White Plains, NY; and Westchester Medical Center, in Valhalla, NY. The Center now has 28 community volunteers who offer support to family caregivers and has more than 7,000 interactions with patients and their families each year.
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