Hospice of Palm Beach County

My mother recently passed after being diagnosed with terminal cancer in October, 2015. Upon the diagnosis, the doctor suggested that I reach out to Hospice as soon as possible. It took me a few days to mentally prepare myself, but finally made the call. I am so glad that I did. This group of professionals is truly God sent; Angels on earth! From the admissions person, Amy to all of the supporting folks, to include Ernestine, Inez and the staff at the Gerstenberg Center, all were beyond caring. In fact, they became family throughout that difficult time. The loving care continues as I utilize their bereavement services to deal with the loss. Thank you Hospice of Palm Beach County /​Trustbridge for all that you have done and continue to do!

My father recently passed away at the Hospice and Palliative Care unit at Gardens Hospital on Burns Road, which is affiliated with Hospice of Palm Beach County. My family and I were overwhelmed by the loving care provided to my father and our entire family during his 5 days in the unit. From the initial consult through dad’s peaceful passing, the doctor, nurses, and caregivers were gentle with dad and respectful of his needs, as well as those of his grieving family. They took the time to explain the dying process to us so that we would not be scared or confused by what we were seeing, they ensured dad was comfortable, and they grieved with our family. I just cannot say enough about their care and kindness. Liz, Jerry, Hilma, Yawneke, Judy, Jay, Dr. Klapper, and the entire staff were truly a blessing to dad and our family. My dad was the greatest man I know; I am so grateful he received the care and peace he deserved.

Unfortunately, I have had the opportunity to deal with this establishment and do not recommend anyone else succumb their loved one or family members to the insensitive encounters I experienced.
My mother-​in-​law received horrible care from this hospice (as well as from other caregivers) and the family members who reported this were told not to be with their loved one at the end. The people involved with this hospice are incompetent, not professional, uncaring and rude.
You and your loved one deserve better.

Very kind staff, very good for my medical care for my sister. Would highly recommend.
When my mom began considering hospice for my sister, it was hard for us. Honestly, they gave our family so much help that I wish we had called months before. The only thing bad was that in the end, one of the nurses who stayed with us around the clock should have coordinated with my mom more. She wanted to be included when they administered medication and he did not.

I entrusted the care of both my mother in 2007 and my mother-​in-​law in 2012 to Hospice of Palm Beach County. Our family’s experience was so wonderful, with two completely different situations to draw from.
My mother, in constant denial about her terminal illness, would not consent to hospice until the bitter end. We knew it was right for her and from all we heard, they would help her through this process. Mom would not hear of it. She thought she was going to beat the cancer. We now wish we had called sooner. Mom continued to decline and went through a great deal of pain and fear that I believe could have been avoided. Finally mom was hospitalized and after a couple of days, she was unresponsive. Her breathing was labored and she just seemed to be uncomfortable. When hospice was suggested and called, it was 10:00pm or so on a Friday. I didn’t know what to expect, because it was so late and on the heels of a weekend. Hospice of Palm Beach County sent a nurse to meet me at the hospital within 30 minutes. I was shocked! They made a difficult decision and the process very easy for me. Mom was transported to their inpatient unit at the Gerstenberg Center on 45^th Street. Mom’s nurses, aides, social workers, chaplains, music therapists and physicians were angels!!! They put me at ease from the first minute, but more importantly they put Mom at ease. Yes, I know she was non-​responsive, but within an hour of her being there, you could see she was comfortable. Her breathing was not labored, she was not moaning in pain. She looked like the Mom I always remembered. They bathed her with care and took care of her as though she was awake and watching them; like she was their own mother. It was beautiful to see. They let me come to the inpatient center any time of day or night to sit with Mom, often checking on me to see how I was doing. It took a long while to realize I was their patient too. They were taking care of me, as much as Mom. It was a beautiful, enriching experience I would want for anyone and everyone.
My Mother-In-Law’s (Mom 2) experience was so different, but so similar. She knew of the care my Mom received and opted to call the same hospice, Hospice of Palm Beach County much sooner, as it became increasingly difficult for my Father-​In-​Law to care for her. Mom 2 was at home. Hospice scheduled their appointment around my wife’s family’s schedules to meet and answer their questions. It was a scary time for them, but it was made so easy by their Admissions Nurse. She never rushed them and never made them give up anything they wanted. Hospice made it very clear that Mom 2 was always in control of what happened to her. Mom 2 was adamant that she was not going to go to a hospital to die, not going to a nursing home and not going to an assisted living facility. The Hospice Nurse said, then that was what was going to happen. They would do all they could to keep her at home… and they did. Mom 2 had the most caring and compassionate caregivers anyone could hope for. They treated her like the lady she was. They bathed her, they talked with her, they sang to her, they prayed with her, they even had a massage therapist come in to relieve her pain, they saw to it that she received communion, they answered every question and yes, they held their promise; Mom 2 was always in control and in charge of what happened. Mom 2 and Dad 2 truly felt they had additional family there to help them each day. Morning, noon or night, questions were answered and support was given. Mom 2 had the benefit of this wondrous care for over 3 months, before she passed peacefully in her own home, as she wished. When hospice was called, a social worker came out at midnight, to help us all through her death. Mom 2 was ready and so was our family because of all the preparation Hospice gave us.
So Mom and Mom 2 had different experiences, because one was at their facility and one was home; one was unresponsive and one was «in charge»; but they both received the same wonderful care and compassion.
I cannot say enough about what Hospice of Palm Beach County did for our family. They worked with us every step of the way, removing fear, pain, concern and just the plain unknown. I don’t know what we would have done without them. God Bless these Angels.

My family had such a wonderful experience with hospice, that I felt the need to write a review so others may also use their services at the time of need. I felt very lucky that when my stepdad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer we signed on with hospice right away. The main reason was for my mom. She felt her life was turned upside down and did not know what to do and how she was going to carry on. It turned out to be the most amazing situation for all involved. From the equipment that was delivered to their home, to the medicines being organized for them, and of course the nurses and nurse assistants, we could never have made it without them. They developed a routine that worked for the whole house. When things got bad at the end, they recogonized the signs and helped my mom with the different phases of dying. They respected my stepdad, and let him be where he wanted to be; in his own home. We are forever grateful to the angels that came from this organization.

It has taken me this long to finally write a review for the hospice services we used when my elderly parent passed away 2.5 years ago in Delray Beach Fl.
Had my other surviving parent and sibling knew how uncaring, impersonal, and simply unprofessional Hospice of Palm Beach County was we would have *never* called them for hospice services. In a nutshell:
* Useless, uncommunicative, and unprofessional social worker who had no people skills let alone skills dealing with relatives of dying patient.
* No real understanding of how much pain my parent was in during last week and hence very little morphine administered. They failed to follow up on my parent until my sibling asked them to check up on on my dying parent.
* Poor communication with the staff in the health center my parent was staying in.
And the clinchers:
*On the day my parent passed away (I was there), the hospice sent in a non-​stop yapping «hospice nurse» who did not allow my other parent and myself to spend time with my dying parent. This nurse talked *non-​stop* throughout the day about herself and her problems. We could not handle her behavior. If I had it more together I would have told to leave the room.
* My parent died around midnite that nite. My other parent, sibliling nor I was not with my parent at death. The hospice nurse did not call us. Only the health center nurse called me 5 minutes after my parent died. My other parent and I went immediately to the health center which was 5 minutes away.
We walked into the room where my dead parent was lying in bed and the «hospice» nurse…(not a nurse. apparently but some college kid who they hired) was actually doing her homework with her feet up on chair watching TV next to my DEAD parent (who had just died 5 minutes before) who was lying in bed. This «hospice worker» looked surprised as though we caught her doing something. I forcefully told her to SHUT OFF THE TV AND GET OUT.
The heath center nurse was so upset about the hospice care my parent had received that she began to cry.
Hospice of Palm Beach County should be ashamed of themselves. I feel for anyone else who was subjected to their uncaring and appalling treatment of any other dying relative.