Bridge Hospice
View a short
video about how Bridge Hospice can help your family.
Bridge Home Health and Hospice is please to present the following three testimonials currently airing on Toledo and area TV. The message is being delivered by Bridge patient families.
Darlene
Dawn
Andy (Dr, Andy Ritz)
The hospice philosophy affirms death as a natural part of life, seeking neither to hasten, nor prolong the dying process. Skilled staff and volunteers offer a holistic approach in caring for the terminally ill AND their families, meeting the patient's MEDICAL needs and providing EMOTIONAL, SPIRITUAL, and SOCIAL support for the patient AND his/her family members.
Bridge hospice nurses have training and experience in dealing with the special needs of the terminally ill. A hospice nurse is on call 24 hours a day/seven days a week. We are able to provide service to eight counties in northwest Ohio, including Hancock, Wood, Henry, Putnam, Allen, Hardin, Wyandot and Seneca Counties. Trained volunteers are actively involved, providing respite, support and friendship for family caregivers.
A service of the Blanchard Valley Health System, Bridge Home Health & Hospice has provided hospice care since 1983.
Eligibility:
- Limited Life Expectancy
- No longer receiving active curative treatment
Interdisciplinary Team:
- Physicians
- Nurses
- Nurses' Aides
- Social Workers
- Chaplains
- Volunteers
- Bereavement Staff
Our team of caregivers provides:
- Pain Management & Symptom Control
- Medical Supervision
- Skilled Nursing Assessment & Guidance
- Bereavement Support
- Personal Care
- Trained Volunteer Assistance
Care settings:
- Private Homes
- Nursing Homes and Assisted/Independent Living Facilities
- Hospitals
- Inpatient Hospice Care Center
Accepted Insurances/Payment Options:
- Services are billed directly to Medicare and Medicaid, private insurance or to individuals.
- Thanks to generous community support hospice care is provided by Bridge regardless of ability to pay.
Hospice programs throughout the United States rely heavily on volunteers to assist in providing support for terminally ill patients and their families. Bridge Home Health has hundreds of volunteers in several counties, but with our growing program, there is always a need for more. Bridge volunteers receive hours of extensive training to enable them to be resources for patients and families.
Bridge Home Health volunteers understand the important role that they take in providing quality hospice care. Our trained volunteers help fulfill the mission of Bridge Hospice by providing our patients and families with:
Respite
Short term breaks, where a volunteer stays with the patient so the caregiver can have lunch, go to the doctor, run errands, or just take a moment for themselves.
Friendly visits
Volunteers visit and offer companionship to patients and their families both at home and in nursing facilities.
Errand running/transportation
Volunteers go to the grocery store, post office, dry cleaners, etc., or accompany patients/families on outings.
Bereavement Support
Volunteers accompany families to support groups, offer companionship, and act as buddies and activity leaders at Camp S.T.A.R., our annual children’s grief camp.
Gift of Dreams
This is a group of dedicated volunteers whose purpose is to help improve the quality of life for Bridge Hospice patients. This mission is fulfilled by granting patients’ wishes; providing HOPE, the hospice bear; remembering birthdays and anniversaries, and providing items for loan to patients, including wheelchair ramps. The Gift of Dreams is supported in part by memorial donations.
Clerical Support
Volunteers assist office staff with routine but necessary tasks such as mailings, filing, data entry, etc., on either a routine or casual basis.
Bridge volunteer training programs are held throughout the year in several locations. Volunteers are needed in Hancock, Wood, Seneca, and surrounding counties.
If you would like to learn more about Bridge Hospice volunteer services or to take advantage of the services offered by our hospice volunteers, please contact our volunteer coordinator at (419) 423-5351.
In January, 1996, two subsidiaries of the Blanchard Valley Health System merged to become Bridge Home Health & Hospice. As our name illustrates, Bridge provides both home health and hospice services. Prior to 1996, Blanchard Valley Health Services operated the home health program, and hospice services were provided by the Bridge Hospice Care Center.
Both agencies were started to fill growing health care needs in our community. Both agencies developed and expanded during an era of significant change in our nation's health care system.
Seeing an increasing need for health care delivered in the home, Hancock County developed a county-operated home health program in 1967. In 1981, Bill Ruse, then president of Blanchard Valley Hospital, shared his vision of a hospital-based home health program with Findlay's Board of Health. Ultimately, Hancock County Home Health dissolved and five of its employees joined the Blanchard Valley Health System to begin Blanchard Valley Health Services in 1982. During its first year, the organization made 7,078 visits with seven staff members and three temporary nurses. By 1995, Blanchard Valley Health Services had made 21,216 visits and was managing 150 patients per month.
Since its beginnings in the early 1980's, Blanchard Valley Health Services developed many specialized programs and services including IV therapies, a mother/baby home visit program, and home phototherapy for jaundiced babies.
In 1981, interested area residents came together to discuss the idea of a hospice program in Hancock County. Hospice provides medical, emotional, and spiritual support for terminally ill patients and their families. A steering committee assessed community support, and in 1983, the non-profit corporation Hospice of Hancock County was formed. With a loan of $100,000 from the Blanchard Valley Health System, the service became a reality and opened an office on South Main Street in Findlay in 1984 and began serving residents of Hancock and surrounding counties.
When the hospice program in Wood County was discontinued, residents and physicians from the area approached Hospice of Hancock County in 1989 about providing services in that area. After recruiting volunteers and training staff, Hospice of Hancock County expanded to include Wood County in 1990. As a result of this expansion, the name Hospice of Hancock County was changed to The Bridge Hospice Care Center in 1992.
Now combined as Bridge Home Health & Hospice, our merger has made it easier for patients to move from one service to another and, in many cases, retain the same caregivers. Our main office is located at 15100 Birchaven Lane in Findlay, with satellite offices at 1037 Conneaut Aveune in Bowling Green and 182 St. Francis Avenue in Tiffin. Our service area includes Hancock, Wood, Putnam, Wyandot, Seneca, Allen, Hardin, and Henry counties.
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15100 Birchaven Lane - Findlay, OH 45840 - 419.423.5351
1037 Conneaut Ave. Suite 204 - Bowling Green, OH - 419.352.9808
182 St. Francis Ave. - Tiffin, OH 44883 - 419-443-1363 |
