Houston Hospice

About Us

Founded in 1980, Houston Hospice has evolved from an alternative grass roots concept to a leader in hospice care for people of all ages and all walks of life. Houston's oldest, largest, independent hospice, we are proud to be a 501 (c) (3) organization that is community-based, community-supported and not for profit. This independence allows us to react quickly to community needs and incorporate new innovations in hospice care. Thanks to the generous, unwavering support of our corporate and private sponsors, we continue to serve Texans from all socio-economic groups irrespective of a person's ethnicity, beliefs or ability to pay.

Headquartered in the Texas Medical Center, Houston Hospice's service area is covered through four strategically located offices to meet the needs of our area's burgeoning population. We currently serve a multi-county area in Texas that has grown far beyond Harris County to include all or parts of Harris, Waller, Fort Bend, Montgomery, Wharton, Matagorda, Austin, Colorado, Brazoria and Jackson counties.

Our unique brand of hospice care is provided in-home and in residential facilities. In-patient and respite care is provided through the Margaret Cullen Marshall Hospice Care Center located in the Texas Medical Center. We believe no one should live in pain or in fear of being alone. We believe everyone deserves to be treated as a unique individual, not just a patient. We are ardent advocates for children's rights to grieve and to have their lives celebrated as full and complete. Patients and their families have the ability to be specific about their wishes.

Houston Hospice utilizes a team-oriented approach to medical care, pain management, emotional and spiritual support which is tailored to each patient’s unique situation. Concurrently, we offer educated counsel, compassionate support and bereavement counseling to help each patient's loved ones and family members better understand and cope with their loss.

Houston Hospice is in network providers for most insurance companies and is licensed by Medicare and Medicaid. Furthermore, the agency never denies treatment based on a patient's ability to pay for services.

Patient Services

When a patient with a severe illness decides that curative measures are no longer appropriate or effective, the option of hospice care is a compassionate, dignified and cost-effective end-of-life care option. When possible, the patient can receive treatment within his or her own home. The hospice team who visits the patient on a regular basis consists of a nurse, hospice aide, social worker, volunteer and chaplain. Staff physicians are consulted and are available when necessary.

The essence of Houston Hospice care is:

• quality of life
• treatment of the patient, not the disease
• the provision of palliative (the alleviation of pain) treatment
• the family as the "unit of care," not simply the patient
• 24 hours a day, 7 days a week available help from the hospice nurses and physicians

Following assessments in the areas of physical pain, emotional needs, spiritual issues, legal concerns and practical arrangements, the patient, family and physician approve a plan of care. Being involved in making the plan helps patients and families face the last stages of life more comfortably and confidently.

Patient care is provided by Houston Hospice in the home, in a nursing home or residential facility or in the Margaret Cullen Marshall Hospice Care Center which is located in the Texas Medical Center.

There are four levels of care that are provided by hospices in the United States. Every patient receiving hospice services will be on one of these four levels. A hospice patient can move from one level to another and back, depending on the services required to fulfill his or her needs.

Programs

Butterfly Program

Houston Hospice cares for the terminally ill patients and their families in many ways. To better serve children, Houston Hospice initiated The Butterfly Program, providing special services for children with life-limiting conditions who are aged 18 and younger. This program includes perinatal hospice for those families that have been told of a prenatal diagnosis that indicates their baby likely will have a limited lifespan.

Wings Program

The Wings Program offers emotional support for grieving children and teens. Services to the community are free and open to children ages 5-18 that have lost someone significant in their lives. A seven-week peer support program offers emotional support and education information about the grieving process. Concurrent adult groups for parents and/or guardians help adults in understanding how children react to issues of grief.