Mission
Hospice of the Western Reserve provides palliative end-of-life care, caregiver support, and bereavement services throughout Northern Ohio.

In celebration of the individual worth of each life, we strive to relieve suffering, enhance comfort, promote quality of life, foster choice in end-of-life care and support effective grieving.

Organizational Values
Commitment, adaptability, integrity, leadership, professionalism, open communication, teamwork, accountability.

Core Values

• Facilitate a safe and comfortable dying.
• Respect patient and family decision making.
• Respect patient and family privacy.
• Recognize the right to appropriate medical care.
• Assure availability of care when cure is not possible.
• Provide care using holistic approaches.
• Treat symptoms and palliate suffering without prolonging life or hastening death.
• Support team principles and practices throughout the organization.
• Recognize physical, emotional, spiritual dimensions in patients and families.
• Provide end-of-life education throughout the community.
• Seek continual improvement to provide quality care.
• Serve as a community bereavement and grief resource.
• Anticipate needs before problems arise.
• Respect the cultural and religious heritage of each person served.
• Assure service availability regardless of ability to pay.

Philosophy
Hospice of the Western Reserve affirms the dignity of life and advocates for patient and family comfort and quality during life's final phase.  We believe that hospice patients have the right to continue life to the fullest extent possible according to their circumstances and we believe in fostering opportunities for continuing growth and fulfillment.  We further recognize patients' decision-making rights in relation to continuing medical treatments and we advocate the right to withdraw treatments whose benefits are outweighed by their burdens.  We also support the use of medication to alleviate pain even if there is a risk of death as a secondary and unintended consequence.

Although Hospice of the Western Reserve does not support or participate in assisted suicide or euthanasia, we understand that some patients may request assistance with suicide or euthanasia.  We will not abandon these people but rather, will continue to support them and their families providing comfort care including pain and symptom management as well as social, psychosocial and spiritual support.