Category: Palliative Care

Training the Next Generation of Hospice-Minded Doctors

Posted on by Hospicare

My name is Dr. Lucia Jander. I am the medical director for Hospicare & Palliative Care Services. You may know that Hospicare provides hospice, palliative care, and grief support to people living in Cortland and Tompkins counties, but did you know that we also recently started a new program training medical residents?

Since May of 2021, Hospicare has been working with Dr. Janette Lee of Cayuga Medical Center (CMC) to train a new generation of doctors in the Internal Medicine Residency program. These young doctors are doing their Geriatric Rotation at Hospicare.

Dr. Lucia Jander speaks with Dr. Priyesh Thakurathi, a CMC resident participating in the Geriatric Rotation at Hospicare.

My own professional interest in hospice came from an elective rotation in my residency. There is no formal requirement to have a hospice experience, but clearly it is very helpful for future internists in the community to understand these issues.

Let me explain the difference between hospice and palliative care: Hospice is a subset of palliative care for people who are at the end of life, generally with a 6-month prognosis. Palliative care can be delivered for several years before patients qualify for hospice. It is a special care for people with severe and chronic illnesses and can be given concurrently with curative care. The goal of palliative care is to help with symptom management, allow for open communication, and improve a patient’s quality of life.

During this semester-long rotation, CMC residents spend time in a long-term care facility, perform home hospice visits, come to our hospice residence, and are introduced to working in an interdisciplinary health care team. The goal of the rotation is to develop knowledge, skills, and the interpersonal communication needed to provide effective and compassionate care to patients receiving our services. Residents gain a broader understanding of the difference between hospice and palliative care.

During the Geriatric Rotation, CMC residents learn ways to help patients stay at home, improve their quality of life, and help them understand their illness, which may result in decreased hospitalizations or trips to the emergency room. I think it is important to remind trainees that 99% of patients’ lives are spent outside of the hospital; this may seem an obvious statement, but when residents are in the middle of their training, they are seeing the worst 1% of people’s lives when they are in crisis-medical misery. My hope is that the outpatient geriatric rotation helps CMC resident’s understand what matters most to their geriatric patients and ways to improve their quality of life.

Dr. Priyesh Thakurathi, a CMC resident meets with a patient at the Hospicare residence.

My primary goals are to teach trainees to understand their patients’ priorities (which may be vastly different from the healthcare team’s priorities) and help them recognize how much social factors influence patients’ lives – much more than our medical interventions.

CMC residents become incorporated into the Hospicare team. They join our nurses and social workers on their workday. The more exposure they have to Hospicare, the higher likelihood they will appreciate the help hospice provides for their patients, give prompt referrals for those who will benefit from hospice and palliative services, and stay in the community as primary care practitioners starting next July.

We are very glad to be able to train the next generation of doctors!

Why I Work in Hospice (Part 2) – Suzy Quinones, Hospicare RN

Posted on by Hospicare

A Special Blog Series in Honor of National Hospice and Palliative Care Month

This November, we are sharing a special blog series written by Hospicare staff in honor of National Hospice and Palliative Care Month. Each post will feature a different member of our staff as they share why they love the work they do. In part two of this series, we feature Suzy Quinones, Hospicare RN.

Suzy Quinones, Hospicare RN

“My role here at Hospicare is to help patients live the rest of their lives as comfortably as possible and to help ensure their wishes are fulfilled. Providing education and suggestions for patients and their families about how best to meet that patient’s specific needs and how to manage their symptoms adequately. Every patient is different, so I like to customize my care to best fit each patient’s needs and wishes.

At Hospicare, we really try to meet people ‘where they are’ and adjust to their needs accordingly as time goes on. To help make this possible, collaboration with other members of the Hospicare team is essential. Our team is made up of social workers, bereavement specialists, our medical director, spiritual care, volunteers and so many others that help keep our patients safe and comfortable.

Death is commonly seen as a scary thing, but it doesn’t have to be. I try to make death a beautiful transition for patients and their families by doing anything I can to support them physically and emotionally during this time. I feel very blessed that patients allow me to accompany them on this journey.”

Why I Work in Hospice (Part 1) – Kimmy Jones, Clinical Team Leader

Posted on by Hospicare

A Special Blog Series in Honor of National Hospice and Palliative Care Month

This November, we are sharing a special blog series written by Hospicare staff in honor of National Hospice and Palliative Care Month. Each post will feature a different member of our staff as they share why they love the work they do. In part one of this series, we feature Kimmy Jones, RN and Clinical Team Leader.

Kimmy Jones, RN, Clinical Team Leader

“Hello, I’m Kimmy. I’m the clinical team leader for Hospicare which means I supervise the primary nurses, LPNs, and home health aides in the field. Most of the patients we serve are in the field, living in a private home or a facility within Tomkins or Cortland counties. I’ve been an RN for 16 years and hospice work is the most meaningful nursing care I’ve ever done. It’s sacred work. I started my nursing career in the emergency department, then I worked in lactation education and breastfeeding/chest feeding support, and now I work in hospice.

I started here at Hospicare a little over three years ago as a primary nurse. After a year, I moved into the team leader position. This move just happened to take place right before the discovery of the Covid-19 virus. We have continued to serve the community and our patients throughout the entirety of the Covid-19 pandemic and to be diplomatic, it’s been quite a learning experience. The reason we have been successful during this time is our outstanding team of devoted staff members. Everyone has their heart focused on the mission to continue to care for our community, which has allowed us to forge through the uncertainty and ever-changing landscape of nursing care that has been brought on by this pandemic.

Hospice work can be very emotionally taxing. It can even be heartbreaking. But it’s some of the most rewarding and special work I’ve ever done. We are invited into people’s homes during a very sacred and intimate time, and it is such an honor. It feels fulfilling to be able to alleviate distress, whether that’s physical or emotional, and for the patient and family to trust us and look to us for guidance and reassurance. You’ll be hard pressed to find any healthcare worker who doesn’t find that rewarding. 

When asked ‘What brought you to work in hospice?’, a lot of people have beautiful stories about a personal experience they had when a loved one received hospice. I don’t have a story like that. For me, it just felt good. It felt right.”

New Year’s Letter from our Executive Director

Posted on by Hospicare

By Kim De Rosa

Looking towards the next decade at Hospicare & Palliative Care Services.

New Year’s is a time to reflect on the year that’s passed as well as set intentions for the one that lies ahead. This year seems particularly meaningful to me as we embark on a new strategic plan that will guide Hospicare into this next decade and beyond.
Hospicare is honored to serve our neighbors throughout Cortland and Tompkins counties by providing palliative care, hospice and grief support to all who need us. While I am grateful to lead this incredible organization as Executive Director, Hospicare belongs to every one of us – our patients, families, volunteers, donors, supporters, and of course, our phenomenal staff.


Together, we are Hospicare. And together, we are going to make sure that every single person who can benefit from our care knows where to turn.


In 2020, we will embark on major initiatives to grow our palliative care program, which improves quality-of-life on a physical, emotional and spiritual level and is available to anyone facing serious illness. A major part of this initiative will be helping our community better comprehend palliative care, a term that still confuses many people. We’re hiring a nurse practitioner to lead our clinical efforts alongside the nurses, social workers, and other staff who are at the core of our care team. Simultaneously, a major gift from a grateful patient (read about the Tapan Mitra story) will allow us to jumpstart a multi-faceted educational campaign, spanning online, print, radio and in-person initiatives. As a valued part of the Hospicare family, you also are an important advocate! We want to ensure that you know and can describe palliative care to your friends and family, so we’ll be working on communication tools to help with that as well.


Another key priority for 2020 is to build awareness of hospice and how it can support families for months – not just weeks or days — before a death. Our hearts break every time we hear someone say, “I wish we had contacted Hospicare sooner.” Our goal is to help patients feel empowered to talk to their doctors about hospice, and to reach out directly to us at any time with questions.
These are just two of Hospicare’s initiatives, and I’m looking forward to working with you to make them reality.


This community is a special place to call home, and it’s the people who make it so. Thank you for all the ways in which you support Hospicare’s work, and my best wishes to you and yours for a bright start to 2020!
Kim De Rosa 

Hospicare & Palliative Care Services Receives Major Gift to Grow Palliative Care in Cortland and Tompkins Counties

Posted on by Hospicare

Hospicare & Palliative Care Services Executive Director Kim De Rosa announced today the community’s access to palliative care services throughout Cortland and Tompkins Counties will increase substantially thanks to a major gift from the estate of a local resident. The $100,000 donation will be used by Hospicare to establish the Tapan Mitra Fund for Palliative Care and the Tapan Mitra Endowment for Palliative Care.

“Palliative care can make a world of difference for patients and their families, and the research backs that up,” said De Rosa. “Hospicare is launching a major effort to expand and grow our popular program, ensuring that all who can benefit from palliative care know where to turn. We are immensely grateful for this transformational gift and the opportunity to partner with an incredible family to make a significant difference in our community.”

Cornell University professor Tapan Mitra, a leading economic theorist, died of cancer in February. At the time of his passing, his care was coordinated by Hospicare. Dr. Mitra directed that a portion of his estate be used to support education, the environment and cancer services. This gift to Hospicare was administered by the Community Foundation of Tompkins County.

“Professor Mitra was grateful and impressed at the quality of care he received from Hospicare in his final days,” said Aveek Majumdar, his nephew. “He would have been heartened that part of his legacy will allow others in the community to benefit from the organization’s further expansion to palliative care services.”

“Dr. Mitra’s charitable gift to support strong partnerships and to publicize the benefits of palliative care will provide comfort and compassionate care to many people well into the future. “We are proud to offer this leadership opportunity for Hospicare, and are especially grateful to our donor who makes it possible for local quality of care programs to thrive,” said George Ferrari, Community Foundation CEO. “These planned gifts become a meaningful force in local philanthropy.”

Palliative care specializes in relieving the symptoms and stress of serious illness. Symptoms may be physical, emotional, or spiritual, and the goal is to improve quality of life for patients and their families. Palliative care may be appropriate at any point in an illness, from diagnosis on, and – unlike hospice– it can be provided at the same time as curative treatments. 

The Tapan Mitra Fund for Palliative Care will provide the financial resources to cultivate strong partnerships with the region’s medical communities, and to provide Hospicare’s service area (Tompkins and Cortland Counties) with education and information about the benefits of palliative care and its interdisciplinary approach. Interest earnings from the Tapan Mitra Endowment for Palliative Care will provide funds in perpetuity for outreach and marketing efforts.

Since 2017, Hospicare’s PATH (Palliative Approach To Health) program has served hundreds of patients and families. Each of its approximately 70 patients have access to a nurse who assists with symptom management, coordination of care, and finding community resources to help with individual needs. In 2020, PATH will expand in both staff and scope, providing patients even more hands-on, focused care.

Palliative care programs have proven an effective addition to the overall care for serious illness, reducing pain and other distressing symptoms. The programs also increase patient and family/caregiver satisfaction with their care and make transitions between hospitals and other care settings easier. Numerous studies have shown that palliative care improves patients’ quality of life, decreases depression and anxiety, saves patients from unnecessary hospitalizations and tests, and even prolongs life.

Dr. Mitra’s passion for the community and for education drove him to make significant philanthropic gifts, both during and after his life. In 2016, Dr. Mitra established endowments to offer prizes for economics students at Cornell and the University of Rochester.  This past summer, a gift to the Finger Lakes Land Trust administered by Community Foundation established the Tapan Mitra Preserve.

This donation is the second-largest single private gift in Hospicare’s 36-year history.