Local hospice organization gets grant, seeks volunteers

Care Dimensions, the nonprofit organization that operates the hospice house in Lincoln, will hold online training classes for those interested in becoming. You can make a difference in a patient’s life by:

• Engaging in a shared interest or hobby
• Helping with letter-writing or life review
• Visiting with your approved dog
• Reading to the patient
• Listening and by providing a supportive, comforting presence

Volunteers are resuming in-person visits with patients in their homes, in facilities, and at the hospice houses. Volunteers are provided all necessary personal protective equipment. If patient visits are not the right fit, you can volunteer in other ways, such as providing administrative office support or making check-in phone calls to current patients or bereaved family members.

The 16-hour training will be held via Zoom on Mondays and Wednesdays from 9–11 a.m. from March 13 through April 5 (register by March 3). For more information or to register, go to www.CareDimensions.org/volunteers or email volunteerinfo@CareDimensions.org.

Care Dimensions recently received a $25,800 grant from the Parmenter Foundation to fund several programs that help elevate social engagement, care, and support for hospice patients and their loved ones, including:

• Uber Health Rides — Provides free, reliable transportation for residents of MetroWest whose loved ones are on Care Dimensions hospice service either at home or at the hospice house in Lincoln. This service ensures family caregivers, who do not drive or cannot afford a means of transportation, can visit their loved one who is on their end-of-life journey.
• Mobile Integrated Health Program — For hospice patients experiencing urgent pain and symptom escalations during nights and weekends. This service allows for a quicker response time and management of symptoms therefore helping to reduce emergency room visits and hospitalizations.
• Virtual Reality — Allows hospice patients to take virtual tours to places that are special to them or places they’ve wanted to visit but are no longer able to do so. These experiences help revive joyful memories, encourage life review, and create (or recreate) an experience a patient can share with loved ones. 
• Pocketalkers — These hearing amplification devices help hearing-impaired hospice patients remain engaged with loved ones, personal interests, and their hospice team.