ALC Palliative and Hospice Care

The Hospice team at ALC Palliative and Hospice Team took care of my mom during the last week of her life. The entire team - Nurse Case Manager, Nurse's Aide, Social Worker, Chaplain, Music Therapist, Clinical Services Director and Medical Director, were all actively involved in Mom's care. They were present and adjusting to the needs of both my mom and my family. They worked as a synergistically and provided amazing support - especially with the anxiety and restlessness my mother experienced as she transitioned. This hospice team is a Camelot; anyone would be grateful to have them take care of their loved one.

The staff at ALC are patient, easy to talk to and and provided my daughter and me with not only information about their services but emotional support and understanding when my mother was placed in their care. Their concern is genuine and from the heart. My mother received excellent caregiving and support and I would strongly recommend ALC Palliative and Hospice Care to anyone in need.

We are very thankful for the experience and comfort that ALC provided for our loving mother. Though she was only in hospice a short time before her passing, we are grateful for Dawn and the Chaplain who provided Mom with the utmost care.

I am writing this review in hopes that the next family that has a choice at end of life, chooses a program that will leave them with more peace than our family was left with. We chose ALC for hospice care for my grandfather. As things progressed, we became more concerned of his failing condition. We made it a point to the hospice nurse that things were getting worse. She wrote us off, and left the care as is. We were left with haunting moments of him crying out in pain and begging for help. When we explained this to her, she told us to proceed as normal. As his condition worsened, his blood pressure dropped, his heart failed, the support or care remained the same. She offered no “end of life” support. In the hour before he passed, we called her panicked and were told “if I came every single time someone needed me, I would never be home”. My grandfather passed away with family by his side in what I think was a traumatic ending. We called hospice and she argued with us about “his symptoms” and he lay there not breathing. He died a little after 1:00 AM, and she showed up at almost 3:30 AM. Although we were “on hospice” we had zero support from them. I do not feel hospice transitioned him or us to this ending. As much grief as I feel in this experience, it is equaled to anger and frustration for this hospice program. They say Hind sight is 20/20, and looking back, we should have demanded more, but in those moments you just don’t know. I hope the next family that has to live through this terrible time, gets some peace and support for their loved ones. I can honestly say,I have extreme concerns about this program and the people they staff. This particular hospice nurse had been doing this for 15 years. After speaking with the program after the fact, we were assured by the managers that this should have never happened and they feel horrible. They are right. It shouldn’t have...But it did and the next family deserves to know.