Circles of Influence

Highlights of the Continuing Journey of Past Circle of Life Winners

2009

Organization:  Four Seasons, Flat Rock, NC.  Innovations cited were leading-edge palliative care delivery in rural setting, collaborative research with university, and palliative care outreach.

Award Impact:  The award and its re-presentation in the community sparked an organizational renaissance—as the hospice re-emphasized connections to the community and what that really means.  The organization has expanded its services from just three counties to all of Western North Carolina to ensure that everyone has access to excellent end-of-life care.

It has also led to greater outreach and collaborative opportunities.  The hospice has partnered and been asked to propose partnerships on end-of-life care with area health systems. The hospice is hosting other programs one day a month, helping them adjust models of care to produce better outcomes. It has established a Center of Excellence to pass along their vision and practical "how tos" for creating excellence in end-of-life care, and a Palliative Care Immersion course to train palliative care professionals from across the United States on the skills needed to deliver excellent end-of-life care. The award also has opened doors to collaboration opportunities in expanding end-of-life care on a broad level that are in the early stages.

In addition, Four Seasons research department has expanded and is currently conducting eight open clinical trials, both industry and investigator initiated.  The organization is now part of the Palliative Care Research Cooperative, a newly formed group supported by the NIH and NINR aimed at conducting clinical trials in palliative medicine.  The first trial examines the benefits and/or burdens of statins in patients with less than one year to live.

The award process was a value-added process; anything that encourages looking inward is good.  Preparing for the site visit helped the organization realize it had done amazing things.

It is believed that the Circle of Life Award has heightened the awareness of the wonderful services that Four Seasons offered; thereby keeping donations steady in a down economy.

Organization:  Oregon Health and Science University Palliative Medicine and Comfort Care Program, Portland, OR.  Program innovations include a focus on broadening palliative care, strong research and education elements, collaborative work and state-wide efforts.

Award Impact:  Because receiving the Circle of Life Award entails sharing the organization’s knowledge, the program has been more mindful to make time for collaboration.  It has worked with a Los Angeles veterans’ system on a dyspnea project and participated in several local research programs.

The award helped the program in requesting administration support for a slight change in medical directorship rotation—the administration was very interested in the program’s views, supplied a quick response, and mentioned the Circle of Life Award in its response.

The application was long but beneficial—it required the program to gather information in one document and helped it think about the future.
 

Organization:  Wishard Health Services Palliative Care Program, Indianapolis, IN.  The program was cited for continuity and comprehensive end-of-life care using limited resources, outreach throughout the hospital areas, and holistic approach to care for the poor and dying poor.

Recent Achievements:  On July 16, 2011, Wishard's Palliative Care Team embarked on a second Ride to Remember (R2R2).  Unlike the original 40-day cross-country bicycle ride that Gregory Gramelspacher, MD, completed in 2009, this year a Wishard Bike Team was assembled to ride across Indiana in a day-one way, one day, 160 miles!  As before, each mile was dedicated to the memory of one of the palliative care team's patients.  

2010 brought several changes to Wishard Health Services Palliative Care Program. 

• Since January 2010 the team's physicians have provided consultative services in the oncology clinic, increasing the volume and timeliness of palliative care.  The multidisciplinary approach has also proven to be more convenient for the patients and has further improved continuity of care for patients previously known to the palliative care team from hospitalizations.
• In the spring of 2010 the team created and implemented a robust Access database to track patients, improving the team's ability to track quality measures, identify trends, and create reports.  The database has significantly aided effort to provide interdisciplinary assessment between clinical encounters as well as bereavement services.   
• The Palliative Care Bereavement Program has been expanded with the help of a volunteer.  Future program enhancements will include No One Dies Alone, art therapy, and remembrance/memorial service.
• In March, Dr. Gramelspacher was recognized by the Indianapolis Business Journal as one of its Health Care Heroes in the physician category.  The award honors a physician whose performance on the job is considered exemplary by patients and peers.

Award Impact:  Sidney and Lois Eskenazi contributed one of the greatest philanthropic gifts ever to the people of Central Indiana, and one of the largest gifts ever made to a public hospital in the United States. The Eskenazis contributed $40 million for the new Wishard hospital facilities.

"This hospital and health system affect so many lives in such a positive way, especially those of our community's most vulnerable populations, that we feel it has no equal and offers us the greatest opportunity to contribute to the entire community," said Lois Eskenazi. "In the process of learning everything we can about this institution, we have fallen in love with it and are tremendously excited to support its mission with this gift."

The organization's Palliative Care staff found the Circle of Life site visit invigorating and enjoyable.  The Circle of Life Award presented to our program at the AHA-Health Forum Summit was a great honor.