County hospice now Gateway Hospice

Hospice for Wright County, since being sold in April to Heartland Healthcare, has taken on some new staff, a new (temporary) location, and a new name: Gateway Hospice. Now under the umbrella of The Ensign Group, the same company that has operated the Clarion Wellness and Rehabilitation Center for several years, Gateway Hospice hopes to continue to serve the county and provide hospice services right where patients need it.

Gateway Hospice operates with one full-time and several part-time or PRN nurses and aides, with a chaplain, social worker, and physician available to meet patient needs. Local leaders are Rachel Johnson as branch manager and Nancy Huisinga as clinical director. With the local leadership comes choice and flexibility for the patient to be cared for where most convenient, but the ownership of a larger company also comes with advantages. “We have all the resources of a world-class healthcare organization that operates all over the country a phone call away,” said Kim Rupp, executive director.

Gateway can provide hospice care at home, in an assisted living facility, nursing home or hospital. Services include nursing, social work, spiritual care, volunteer helpers, and bereavement services for families.

“The focus is to increase the quality of life,” Huisinga said. “It’s focusing on a very important stage of a person’s life, and honoring it and acknowledging it, and helping the family to accept and celebrate."

For the full story, see the June 16 edition of the Monitor.