Our Legacy

In our last days, American Hospice Foundation made two bequests to further the development of two pieces of our vision we would like to see continue.

Consumer choice. We are proud to fund Altarum Institute’s Center for Consumer Choice in Health Care (CCCHC) to develop a Web-based set of tools that will help families make quality hospice care decisions for their loved ones. This project will build on the work that Altarum and AHF have already done together to identify what consumers want to know about quality when choosing a hospice provider and how they want that information presented.

“AHF has pioneered research designed to bring hospice quality data to the public,” said Wendy Lynch, CCCHC director. “Their groundbreaking work will ensure that publicly available data will be useful and meaningful to health care consumers making very difficult end of life health care choices.” Read the press release here:  http://bit.ly/1pJfgOP

Grieving children of veterans. The American Hospice Foundation is pleased to provide support to the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) for a model school-based program to address the needs of children of veterans killed in combat or returning with physical and emotional wounds. This training program will build on the enormous contribution that TAPS has already made in ministering to the grief of military children. AHF has pioneered programs on grief and children for nearly twenty years. As we close our doors, we are pleased that our mission will be continue to be served by such an organization recognized for its dedication to military kids and their families.

“We are at once humbled and honored to be entrusted with carrying on the important work of furthering the healing process of the children of our fallen,” said Bonnie Carroll, Founder and President of TAPS. “AHF is leaving a lasting legacy of caring for people at their greatest time of need.  We share in that spirit of caring along life’s journey.” Read the press release here: http://bit.ly/1lPBn4A

How can you help ensure advocacy for hospice care continues?

• Use and share our free materials on hospice and caregiving. Materials like Choosing a Hospice and Providing Care at Home: Can I Do It? are available now, free of charge, on www.americanhospice.org.

• Support your local hospice. Should you want to donate to hospice, we recommend you search your local community for a deserving hospice, as there are many that need support.

• Use and share our free tools for employers and schools on grief. AHF has been providing tools and materials to employers and schools for years to support our national Grief at Work and Grief at School campaigns. Starting today, those materials are available to everyone, free of charge, at www.americanhospice.org. Since launching our Grief at Work public awareness campaign in 1996, more than 3,000 employers utilized our tools for employees and managers. Our Grief at School training curriculum has been used by more than 3,500 schools and was endorsed by the national associations of school counselors, school psychologists and social workers.

Thanks to each and every one of you who supported our work, and more importantly, who supports grief and hospice education and support.