This week Hospice Services of Lake County recognizes our Spiritual Care Partners who provide ongoing spiritual support to the residents of our beautiful lake community. Your commitment in attending to the emotional and spiritual needs of our patients, families, and their friends is very much appreciated. Hospice care is about maintaining dignity and value at the end of life. Your support gives us the ability to provide an authentic presence to those we serve.
I am excited to introduce our new Spiritual Care Provider here at Hospice Services of Lake County. Chaplain Dennis Long has spent his career serving those in hospital and hospice settings. If you would like to know more about our Compassionate Partner Program, please contact Dennis Long at Hospices Services of Lake County 707-263-6222 or visit us on the web at www.lakecountyhospice.org.
Hospice Services of Lake County provides support for the “whole” person. To quote Chaplain Long “As a chaplain and a member of the Hospice Team, our goal is to encourage patients and family members to talk about their concerns and discover their own meaningful answers.”
“My experience with Hospice began after graduating seminary, I began to volunteer as a Hospice Spiritual Care Provider. It was a great opportunity to get to know the people who lived in my parish. I discovered the job of the Hospice Spiritual Care Provider was not as easy as I had thought. I knew I would be serving families experiencing loss but, in the beginning, I was not completely prepared for the spectrum of emotions the patients and their families experienced. I discovered nobody grieved the same. Each person’s grief and feelings of loss are reflected in the relationship with the person undergoing the end of life’s journey. I also came to recognize that everyone encounters grief in their own way and spiritual care needs are different for everyone. I learned over the years of service to the hospice community that spiritual support for those in Hospice Care is more about honoring their life experiences.”
Again, I want to honor all Spiritual Caregivers for your sacred work providing comfort and presence to our most vulnerable. If you would like to know more Hospice Services of Lake County, its programs like Compassionate Partners, please contact Hospice Services of Lake County 707-263-6222 or check them out on the web at www.lakecountyhospice.org and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/HospiceServicesofLakeCounty.
