Hospice of Southwest Florida

My mother used hospice for about a week prior to her death. At 93 years old, she was never diagnosed with Alzheimer disease. Yet, the Hospice MD listed this as her cause of death on the death certificate. The MD obviously assumed this after meeting her in an unconscious state. Really? How about multiple organ failure or age related death? It is certainly not worth the added grief of pursuing a change on the death certificate as we need to have many copies for all of her various accounts. But I am very disappointed that accuracy is not important to Tide-​well Hospice. I can only assume that this was the easiest way to move on to the next source of income. I am not ignorant to the system or the Tidewell monopoly on end of life care in Sarasota. My career has been in healthcare in Sarasota.

This place is now a Tidewell hospice. It is very nice: big central courtyard, big square of quite spacious rooms surrounding it, each room with a lanai, a wheelchair-​accessible large private bathroom, and a convertible couch/​bed for family members, and looking like a nicely decorated room at home rather than like a hospital. As you would expect, it’s very quiet, but there is a piano and a nice lounge with free coffee, tea, and cookies for patients and family members and the volunteers. Menu items are available from morning through early evening for the patients, and there are also vendos for family members who want something more than cookies but don’t want to leave the premises. Security includes having to be buzzed in and signing in and out. Staff are attentive and sensitive to family’s needs. Parking is pretty tight, as it is a campus with other buildings served by the same parking areas. They will ensure that you have a chaplain visit within a day of your loved one’s arrival; this is very low-​key and ecumenical, another thoughtful feature.