Hospice is a gentle, comprehensive, coordinated approach to health care for people with life-limiting illnesses. With the support of highly skilled hospice professionals, people in the last phases of life can live as fully, independently, and comfortably as possible.
By addressing the many complex needs of people who are ill, their families, and their friends, hospice recognizes the significance of each person’s life and the far reaching effects of each person’s death.
The first Massachusetts Hospice, Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd is a non-profit, non-sectarian, community based home care agency. We are deeply committed to providing emotional and physical support to people with life-limiting illnesses and their loved ones. Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd is licensed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, certified by Medicare and Medicaid and accredited by the National Institute for Jewish Hospice.
“Hospice of the Good Shepherd, with its support and quality of service, provided me with perhaps the most vital “just in time” emotional and practical support so far in my lifetime.”
The 5th Annual National Healthcare Decisions Day Is April 16, 2012…. Join Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd and Americans across the country in making future healthcare decisions known to family, friends and healthcare providers. Share your wishes and complete your advance directive, because…YOUR DECISIONS MATTER. For more information and resources, call us at (617) 969-6130. To learn more about National Healthcare Decisions Day and get free information visit www.nhdd.org.
She helps others at the end By Karen Weintraub | Globe Correspondent December 5, 2011
WHO
Vilma Barrios
WHAT
Barrios, a certified nursing assistant at the Hospice of the Good Shepherd in Newton, was recently awarded the 2011 Schwartz Center Compassionate Caregiver Award from the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare, a Boston-based organization that promotes empathy among care givers and better end-of-life care. Click Here For Article
We are ecstatic to announce that once of our own Home Health Aides, Vilma Barrios, was awarded this year's Schwartz Center Compassionate Caregiver. Vilma is the first Nurse's Aide and Hospice worker in the 10-year history of the award to be honored. www.theschwartzcenterblog.com Article from WBUR
We are currently seeking volunteers to help in the office and on special projects. Please contact Christina Coffey at ccoffey@hospicegoodshepherd.org or call (617) 969-6130 for more information.
“Big Feat: Big Success”
On Sunday, October 16th Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd hosted its annual “Big Feat” Memorial Walk. More than 150 Hospice staff, board members, volunteers, family and community members joined to walk in memory or in honor of loved ones. Many great raffle prizes were awarded. Thank you to all of the sponsors, donors and walkers for making this year’s “Big Feat” the most successful walk ever.
Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd is pleased to announce that it recently became the first hospice in Massachusetts to achieve Level Two We Honor Veterans accreditation. We Honor Veterans, a pioneering campaign recently launched by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, intends to help improve the care veterans receive from hospice and palliative care providers.
As a Level Two partner, HGS has committed to honoring veterans at the end of life and has demonstrated the organizational capacity to ensure that veterans have access to veteran-centric, quality end-of-life care.
By recognizing the unique needs of veterans who are confronting a life-limiting illness, HGSwill be able to support Massachusetts’ veterans and their families toward a more peaceful ending – integrating tools for addressing some needs which may be specifically related to veterans’ military service, combat experience or other traumatic events they may have experienced.
Newton person of the week: Chelsea Funk Chelsea Funk is a social worker at Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd in Newton. Click Here For Article
Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd is pleased to announce that its Executive Director, Tim Boon, was recently elected to the "Hospice and Palliative Care Federation of Massachusetts Board of Directors”. For more information about the Federation visit, www.hospicefed.org
Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd is pleased to announce that we have just completed our survey for state licensure and Medicare recertification and were found to be DEFICIENCY FREE!
Have you heard the buzz about the award-winning documentary GEN SILENT? Although you may be aware of the challenges faced by our aging population, for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals facing a medical crisis, the challenges are all too often magnified. Click here to see what the Chicago Sun-Times called, “One of the most important LGBTQ documentaries to come out this [past] year.”
In his newest article, published in The New Yorker, “Letting Go”, Atul Gawande poses this very important question: “What should medicine do when it can’t save your life?” Click here for the full text of Gawande’s article.
Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd client, Roz Bessell honored us with a wonderful "Letter To The Editor" in the Newton Tab. Click Here to read the article.
A Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd client was
featured in the METRO section of The Boston Globe. Click Here to read the article.
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Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd is pleased to announce that we have just completed our survey for state licensure and Medicare recertification and were found to be DEFICIENCY FREE!
Have you heard the buzz about the award-winning documentary GEN SILENT? Although you may be aware of the challenges faced by our aging population, for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals facing a medical crisis, the challenges are all too often magnified. 
Circle of Caring at Hospice of the Good Shepherd