Catholic Hospice

Dear Friends,

The State of Florida has recently identified a need for additional hospice services in District 7B, Orange and Osceola Counties. Catholic Hospice, along with several other hospice programs, is now applying for a license to serve patients in District 7B.

Catholic Hospice, sponsored by the Diocese of Orlando, the Archdiocese of Miami and Mercy Hospital, is currently licensed to serve patients in Miami-Dade, Monroe and Broward Counties. We are dedicated to preserving the dignity of individuals, supporting people of all faiths as they deal with the challenges of death and bereavement. A commitment to alleviating spiritual and emotional distress as well as physical discomfort, allows patients to have the best possible quality of life.

As part of the application, Catholic Hospice must provide Letters of Support that speak to the care it now provides to terminally ill patients and their families, as well as the need for its services in Orange and Osceola Counties.

Only one hospice program will be successful in its bid to provide services to terminally ill patients in District 7B. Your support of the effort to provide Orange and Osceola County residents with the option for faith-based hospice care will be greatly appreciated.

We are providing sample letters that can be edited to include your personal thoughts and experiences. Please feel free to share the sample letters with others who live and work in Orange and Osceola Counties. Both the number and diversity of persons who respond in support is valuable.

If you know of persons who desired to receive hospice services from Catholic Hospice but could not because they live in Orange and Osceola Counties, or persons unhappy with the existing choice of hospice services in Orange and Osceola Counties, or anyone denied hospice services in Orange and Osceola Counties, it would be helpful to include that in the letter.

Thank you for taking time to write the letter and, if possible, requesting the support of others in this effort.

Sincerely,

Bonnie Alkema

If you would like to assist us in making our services available to residents of Orange and Osceola Counties, please click on the following link to email us at: balkema@CatholicHospice.org

Below are two examples of the styles of letters we are looking for. Please feel free to copy and paste from these examples and then personalize the letter as is appropriate.

SAMPLE LETTER #1
Please write on business or personal letterhead stationery, personalizing the text as appropriate to the author.
Sample text to be used/adapted by anyone wishing to write letters of support on behalf of Catholic Hospice’s application for a Certificate of Need to provide hospice services in Orange and OsceolaCounty.

Address to:                Jeffrey N. Gregg, Chief
                                    Bureau for Health Facilities Regulation
                                    Catholic Hospice
                                    P.O. Box 1800
                                    Orlando, FL   32802-1800

Dear Mr. Gregg,

Please accept this letter as a submission of my support of Catholic Hospice’s application for a Certificate of Need to serve patients at the end of life in AHCA hospice service area 7B.

I am personally aware of the service Catholic Hospice provides to the community, caring for the terminally ill with compassion and excellence.

The writer may wish to include a sentence or two sharing a personal experience or knowledge of a patient/family served or personal observation of service by Catholic Hospice staff

I understand that the State of Florida has recently indicated a need for an additional hospice program in Orange and Osceola Counties. Catholic Hospice, a community hospice program, with its bi-lingual staff, is ideally suited to serve the needs of the diverse community in Orange and Osceola Counties.

I encourage you to favorably consider the application of Catholic Hospice to provide services in Orange and Osceola Counties. Approval of its application will increase access to faith based hospice services. Catholic Hospice will be a welcome collaborator with other Catholic providers of health care in the Orange and Osceola Counties area.

SAMPLE LETTER #2
Please write on business or personal letterhead stationery, personalizing the text as appropriate to the author.
Sample text to be used/adapted by anyone wishing to write letters of support on behalf of Catholic Hospice’s application for a Certificate of Need to provide hospice services in Orange and OsceolaCounty.

Dear Mr. Gregg,

Please accept this letter as an indicator of my support of Catholic Hospice’s application for a certificate of need to serve patients at the end of life in AHCA hospice service area 7B, Orange and Osceola Counties.

I believe that those experiencing life limiting illnesses will benefit from a faith based approach to hospice care. Catholic Hospice’s support of the patient and family, during the illness and after the passing of the patient, is especially sensitive to the needs of the Hispanic community in Orange and Osceola Counties. The program, staffed by bi-lingual care givers, will be helpful to care for the growing Hispanic population in Orange and Osceola Counties.

I believe it is very important that all should have the opportunity to access hospice care if medically appropriate. The addition of Catholic Hospice to Orange and Osceola Counties will allow access to hospice services provided by a faith based organization not currently available. I encourage you to favorably consider its application.

Sincerely,