November is National Hospice and Palliative Care month. The 2025 National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation theme is “We See the Whole You.” This emphasizes the importance of a person-centered approach to care which can be demonstrated through an organization’s quality outcomes. When selecting a hospice provider, it is important to ask questions and do your research to ensure you are receiving the best care possible. Luckily there are tools available to help you.
On October 1, 2025, Hospice of Northwest Ohio, along with hospices across the country, implemented additional quality reporting measures called HOPE (Hospice Outcomes and Patient Evaluation). HOPE measures are an added component of the existing Hospice Quality Reporting Program (HQRP). They include new indicators to measure the quality of care of a health care organization. This information is publicly reported by Care Compare on Medicare’s website (https://www.medicare.gov/care-compare/). Consumers can compare the quality scores for hospices and other healthcare entities to make informed decisions about healthcare services for themselves or loved ones.
When consumers examine quality reports and patient outcomes, it’s important to look at more than one agency for comparison. It’s also important to look at state and national benchmarks to examine. For hospices, there is also a star rating based on responses and comments for patient caregivers. Hospice of Northwest Ohio is pleased to have achieved a 4-star rating from CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services).
Hospice of Northwest Ohio is proud to share that more than 90% of loved ones and caregivers would ‘definitely recommend’ our services for others in the community, a true testimony to the individualized care we provide to our patients and caregivers.
Another measure of organization success is accreditation. Hospice of Northwest Ohio is proud to be accredited by The Joint Commission. Seeking accreditation is voluntary and is one more way to demonstrate our commitment to excellence in quality care. While all hospices must be surveyed, by choosing accreditation, an organization undergoes a more thorough evaluation with more rigorous performance standards that ensure safe and high-quality care. Each location at Hospice of Northwest Ohio proudly displays The Joint Commission Gold Seal of Approval.