TRU Community Care Interim CEO Pat Mehnert recently was interviewed by Kaiser Health News for their Navigating Aging column. Read the article here.
TRU Community Care Brings Renowned TED Talk and Expert Dr. Timothy Ihrig to Boulder
For Immediate Release – August 24, 2017
Featured speaker Dr. Timothy G. Ihrig
(Lafayette, CO) – TRU Community Care, founded as Boulder County Hospice in 1976, is proud to present Transcending the Norm—New Thoughts on Caring for Our Community, a symposium October 10-11 featuring keynote speaker Dr. Timothy G. Ihrig. Ihrig’s TED Talk, What We Can Do to Die Well, has been viewed more than one million times.
At this two-day event, attendees will hear from experts in palliative and hospice medicine about the future of health care and what we can do to provide the best outcomes for patients, particularly the elderly. Topics may include: paving the way for palliative partner relationships; practical approaches for moving care upstream; PACE and population health—keys to reaching underserved seniors; and palliative care’s place in advocating for our elders.
When asked about end of life, Dr. Ihrig said,
“Palliative medicine is the answer to engage with human beings, to change the journey that we will all face, and change it for the better.
Join TRU Community Care and Academy Senior Living for this timely and important educational opportunity. Community members, health care providers, partners of hospice, PACE and palliative care and those curious about how to live their best in the last years of life are welcome to attend.
For more information and to purchase tickets to the October 11 day of learning, please visit bit.ly/trusymposium.
About TRU Community Care
TRU Community Care provides end-of-life hospice and palliative care as well as grief services to those residing in Boulder, Broomfield, Adams, Jefferson, and southwest Weld counties. TRU now offers TRU PACE, a Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly. TRU Hospice of Northern Colorado serves Greeley and extends to Weld and Larimer counties. Additional services include grief support groups, which are available to anyone in the community free of charge. It is a privilege for us to help those who are grieving regain their balance and resume healthy living. Grief groups include adult, teen, and child as well as equine therapy. At TRU Community Care, we add life to days, because that’s what TRUly matters. The sooner you call, the more we can help – 303.442.0961 or visit trucare.org.
TRU Community Care Names New CEO
For Immediate Release – August 8, 2017
(Lafayette, CO) – TRU Community Care, founded as Boulder Hospice in 1976, has named a new President and Chief Executive Officer. Michael McHale from Arlington Heights, Illinois, most recently President and CEO of Rainbow Hospice and Palliative Care, will begin his leadership of TRU Community Care, TRU Hospice of Northern Colorado, and TRU PACE (Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly) on September 11, 2017.
Michael McHale
TRU Community Care’s New CEO
McHale has dedicated his professional career to health care with more than 17 years of management, marketing and customer service experience within the hospice and long-term care industry. He has held various leadership positions with hospices in California, Michigan and Maryland prior to joining Rainbow Hospice and Palliative Care in Chicago. Michael holds a Masters of Health Care Administration from National University in San Diego. As a board member of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) in Washington, DC, he is committed to improving quality of care, regulatory oversight and patient and family satisfaction in hospice, palliative medicine and PACE.
This new chief steps in at a critical time in the organization’s history. With over 40 years’ experience in the delivery of end-of-life care, TRU is continuing to grow its programs, having launched TRU PACE in March 2017.
TRU has an outstanding reputation of being a leader in caring for those living with advanced illness. It is an honor for me to join this organization to continue to build on this reputation and find new ways to care for our community.
About TRU Community Care
TRU Community Care provides end-of-life hospice and palliative care as well as grief services to those residing in Boulder, Broomfield, Adams, Jefferson, and southwest Weld counties. TRU now offers TRU PACE, a Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly. TRU Hospice of Northern Colorado serves Greeley and extends to Weld and Larimer counties. Additional services include grief support groups, which are available to anyone in the community free of charge. It is a privilege for us to help those who are grieving regain their balance and resume healthy living. Grief groups include adult, teen, and child as well as equine therapy. At TRU Community Care, we add life to days, because that’s what TRUly matters. The sooner you call, the more we can help – 303.442.0961 or visit trucare.org.
Contact:
Annette Mainland, Vice President of Philanthropy
TRU Community Care
303.604.5261
annettemainland@trucare.org
TRU PACE Social Worker Honors Boulder Senior Reach Program
In honor of Elder Abuse Awareness Day on June 15, TRU PACE social worker Leslee Hecht recognized Boulder Senior Reach employees Jenifer Fischer and Janaki LeFils for their valuable contributions and concern for the well-being of elders in our community.
Boulder Senior Reach social workers Janaki LeFils and Jenifer Fischer receive their awards from TRU PACE social worker Leslee Hecht on
Elder Abuse Awareness Day June 15.
Here is Leslee’s story.
I nominated the Boulder Senior Reach Program because I learned about this tiny gem when I worked alongside their dynamic staff for a year at Mental Health Partners. I met with them again when I moved to TRU PACE and invited them to tour our center for a new resource for their clients, and more recently, when they referred a prospective participant to TRU PACE.
Senior Reach is a home-based support service that reaches out to our county’s most vulnerable elderly residents, including those in isolated mountain communities and those in rural areas, downtown Boulder, Longmont, Lafayette, and other urban areas.
Often, these folks have the added challenges of behavioral health concerns as well as fixed income and lack of resources. Senior Reach offers home visits to provide brief counseling, support services and referral to resources to assist seniors to remain in the community and improve their lives and psychological functioning.
At a training last year I learned about their role in helping to expose a financial exploitation scheme targeting vulnerable adults and their work with the District Attorney to prosecute the perpetrators who preyed on these trusting elders.
In my work at PACE, they referred a struggling couple who were isolated with only meager in-home support to combat their medical challenges and increasing depression.
Senior Reach meets these clients where they are, accepting their choices about how they want to live but offering many resources and supports they may be unaware of to improve their lives and help them function in the challenging world they face now.
Many of these folks have no family, or no one close by, and have outlived their friends and loved ones, which make them vulnerable to those who could take advantage of their situation. The Senior Reach staff are often called angels, and I would agree their work is heroic and often stems the tide of abuse and neglect in the home.
TRU Celebrates National Nursing Assistants Week June 15-22
Who are Career Nursing Assistants?
Nursing assistants (also known as CNAs) are key players in the lives of the people in their care. Each day, more than 4.5 million caregivers provide hands-on care to our nation’s frail, elderly, or chronically challenged citizens in nursing homes and other long-term-care settings. These important workers have various titles including: Nursing Assistant, Direct Care Worker, Nurse Aide, Care Assistant, Caregiver, Hospice Aide, In-Home Care Aide, ED Assistant, Resident Assistant, Hospice Assistant, Patient Care Assistant, Personal Care Assistant, Geriatric Aide, Restorative Aide, Health Care Assistant, and many more. Source: cnanetwork.org
Thank you to our TRU Community Care and TRU PACE CNAs! We couldn’t do it without you. Head over to our facebook page to meet some of our amazing CNAs throughout the week.
TRU Colors Art Sale to Benefit TRU Hospice
For Immediate Release:
(Boulder, CO) – TRU Hospice Thrift Shop, located at 5565 Arapahoe Avenue in Boulder, is collaborating with Mary Williams Fine Arts at 5311 Western Avenue in Boulder to offer “TRU Colors Art Sale” from June 26-30, 2017. Opening night is Friday, June 23rd and will include a reception with refreshments, best selection on limited-edition prints and original works of art, and door prizes.
Using donations of wall art, sculptures, and blown glass from the thrift shop and community at large, art enthusiasts can add to their collection. The professionally vetted art will be sold with 100% of the proceeds benefiting TRU Hospice.
A limited-edition print by popular culture icon and artist Peter Max will be one of the featured pieces in the sale. His bold colors, uplifting images and an uncommon artistic diversity have touched almost every phase of American culture and inspired many generations. Max’s signature style of cosmic characters meticulously painted against bold, vibrant colors was among the most influential graphic sources of the 1960s.
Peter Max, Zero in Love, limited-edition print circa 1979
For more information on how to shop this sale for the newest addition to your collection, contact TRU Community Care’s Office of Philanthropic Services at 303.604.5358.
Volunteers at the TRU Hospice Thrift Shop work to identify items for eBay that attract a higher price than items in the shop. Dan Gleeson, former art teacher at Boulder High School observes, “We are amazed at the quality of the items donated to benefit the work of TRU Hospice. I’m so excited to pull together a collection for sale at Mary Williams Fine Arts—it will be a great opportunity for us.”
TRU Hospice Thrift Shop opened in 2005 to offer a depository for estate items to help families who have lost a loved one. When families feel burdened by possessions, it’s a gift to have TRU Hospice help find a new home for the furniture and household goods. Collectibles, books, furniture, art, and sporting goods, among other contributions, are accepted daily at the shop in east Boulder.
TRU Hospice Thrift Shop seeks volunteers for 4-hour shifts each week. More than 100 volunteers offer their services to the shop and find a great sense of community in the work. Carol Thompson, Volunteer Coordinator adds, “We are a warm, friendly place to give back to our community and have fun at the same time.” Call Carol at 303.605.5353 to learn more about volunteer opportunities.
About TRU Community Care
TRU Community Care provides end-of-life hospice and palliative care as well as grief services to those residing in Boulder, Broomfield, Adams, Jefferson, and southwest Weld counties. TRU now offers TRU PACE, a Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly. TRU Hospice of Northern Colorado serves Greeley and extends to Weld and Larimer counties. Additional services include grief support groups, which are available to anyone in the community free of charge. It is a privilege for us to help those who are grieving regain their balance and resume healthy living. Grief groups include adult, teen, and child as well as equine therapy. At TRU Community Care, we add life to days, because that’s what TRUly matters. The sooner you call, the more we can help – 303.442.0961 or visit trucare.org.
Contact:
Annette Mainland,
TRU Community Care
303.604.5261
annettemainland@trucare.org
TRU Celebrates National Nurses Week
Dear TRU Nurses,
May 6th is recognized as National Nurse’s Day, kicking off the beginning of National Nurse’s Week. The provision of hospice care is first and foremost an interdisciplinary team model of care, as the end-of-life process is so much more than a physical experience. Yet, the physical care of a person during the dying process is often the most visible to the observers.
Some of us have been blessed to be able to perform the art of nursing for 30+ years, some for a handful of years. The one common thread for almost every nurse we have ever met is “I wanted to help people.” The nursing teams at TRU, TRU Hospice of Northern Colorado, and TRU PACE come from all “specialties” in nursing: critical care, med-surg, long-term care, psychiatric, pediatrics, ob/gyn, etc. And, here we are, sharing all of our experiences to form an amazingly talented team who cares for all people, regardless of their need, in the final years, months, weeks, and days. Sometimes it takes all of us putting our skills together, giving credence to “it takes a village.”
Over the years, as each challenge has come along, someone has picked up the gauntlet and said, “I can help.” To the many nurses who share their nursing skills, who share themselves as human beings, we offer you a profound thank you. We are proud of the nursing care that you provide to our patients.
We share this brief paragraph with you:
There is a deep river of meaning that runs through this work. Remembering this meaning daily is what keeps us alive in this work and protects us from exhaustion. The meaning of this work has not changed in thousands of years. It is part of our lineage.
May you all have the opportunity to take a step back this week and appreciate all you have contributed to the community we call TRU, and to the communities we all live in. You make a difference every day.
With profound respect and gratitude,
The Executive Team
TRU Honoring the Contributions of Hospice Volunteers April 23 – 29
During National Volunteer Week, April 23 – 29, TRU is honoring the 555 dedicated volunteers from our community who ensure that patients and families facing serious and life-limiting illness find hope, dignity and love.
Hospice volunteers play an indispensable role in enabling TRU to offer the best care possible for our patients, their families and caregivers. By sharing their time, energy, and expertise, our volunteers bring compassion and caring to the lives of those in need,” said Maria Thomas, Communications Coordinator.
Hospice volunteers often serve patients and families at the bedside but they also assist in the office, help raise awareness, contribute to educational programs, and provide fundraising support and more.
The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization reports that there are an estimated 430,000 trained hospice volunteers providing more than 19 million hours of service to hospice programs each year.
An estimated 1.6 million patients in the U.S. are cared for by hospice every year.
Hospice and palliative care volunteers help the people they serve live every moment of life to the fullest and enable the organizations they work with to achieve their mission in the community. Most hospice volunteers choose to give their time helping others because of their own experience with the compassionate care hospice provided to a dying loved one.
It is federally mandated under Medicare that five percent of all patient care hours be provided by trained volunteers reflecting the vital role that volunteers play in the provision of care.
For those interested in learning more about hospice or volunteer opportunities, please call us at 303.604.5226.
TRU Grief Services Hosting Mother’s Day Event
We invite you to join us in creating a remembrance wreath to honor a loved one.
For
Children, teens, and families coping with loss
What
In this hands-on art workshop, you’ll create a wreath to remember someone who has died – a mother, an aunt, a grandma, or a friend. Wreaths represent the circle of life and the four seasons.
Why
Play and art can act as a catalyst for processing grief. This Mother’s Day, please join us to make something beautiful to honor and remember the special lady who touched your life.
When: Saturday, May 13, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Location: TRU Community Care Grief Services, 2593 Park Lane, Lafayette, CO 80026
Register: Contact 303.604.5330
Learn more about TRU Community Care Grief Services.
Paige Foundation Steps Forward to Support Seniors and New TRU PACE Center
For Immediate Release: April 14, 2017
Contact: Annette Mainland, VP of Philanthropy
303.604.5261 or annettemainland@trucare.org
(Lafayette, CO) – The Herbert & Judy Paige Family Foundation is impacting senior care in Boulder County and beyond through funding and lending to TRU Community Care. Through a shared Board Member, Timothy Schafer, a local attorney specializing in estate planning and a native of Broomfield, TRU has benefited from the Paige Foundation through a low-cost loan of $1.5 million to help with program start-up costs associated with TRU PACE and a capital grant of $40,000 to help offset construction costs.
TRU PACE (Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly) launched on March 1, 2017 and serves frail elders who are nursing-home eligible, allowing them to remain safely in their community. PACE is a model of care that provides an 11-member interdisciplinary team approach to create individualized care plans. PACE participants visit the center two, three, or five days each week to receive care. In-home care is provided to round out the TRU PACE spectrum of services.
PACE is a Medicare/Medicaid funded program, but start-up costs, along with costs to provide the PACE center are not reimbursed by these government insurance programs. Therefore, TRU Community Care has been raising funds through a capital campaign to help to offset costs associated with their construction of the PACE center. The Paige Foundation made a grant of $40,000 to assist with the capital campaign.
PACE requirements dictate that program staff must be in place before any seniors can join the program. When the Paige Foundation learned about the need to front the program costs, Schafer put the foundation and the organization together to discuss possible loan arrangements. The very favorable loan rate the foundation offered to TRU enabled TRU PACE to borrow $1.5 million.
TRU Community Care is grateful for the significant support offered by The Paige Foundation at this time of important growth in service to our community of frail seniors and their families.
About TRU Community Care
TRU Community Care provides end-of-life hospice and palliative care as well as grief services to those residing in Boulder, Broomfield, Adams, Jefferson, and southwest Weld counties. TRU now offers TRU PACE, a Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly serving Boulder and southwest Weld Counties. TRU Hospice of Northern Colorado serves Greeley and extends to Weld and Larimer counties. Additional services include grief support groups, which are available to anyone in the community free of charge. It is a privilege for us to help those who are grieving regain their balance and resume healthy living. Grief groups include adult, teen, and child as well as equine therapy. At TRU Community Care, we add life to days, because that’s what TRUly matters. The sooner you call, the more we can help – 303.442.0961 or visit trucare.org; in Northern Colorado call 970.352.8487 or visit hospiceofnortherncolorado.org.
About the Paige Foundation
The Paige Foundation was founded in 2000 by Herbert and Judy Paige. The Paiges believed that all senior citizens are deserving and entitled to live out their senior years in a manner that is safe and secure, with dignity and integrity.
The mission of the Herbert and Judy Paige Family Foundation is to help low-income students gain access to high-quality education, to provide food, love and shelter for animals and to ensure low-income seniors have necessary healthcare, transportation, housing and food. If you are interested in donating to the Paige Foundation or if you’d like to learn more, please visit www.paigefdn.org.
