At The Center Of Care

Easing Life's Final Journey Is the Purpose and Promise of Hospice of Central Ohio

Helping people live more fully through life’s final days is the cornerstone of Hospice of Central Ohio’s mission. Created by a group of volunteers who envisioned a day where end-of-life care could be administered with compassion, comfort, and respect, Hospice of Central Ohio (HOCO) provides essential hospice and palliative care services, regardless of a patient or family’s ability to pay.

HOCO serves nine counties with four physical locations and a fifth soon to open at The Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center.

HOCO provides both in-home and inpatient services; the majority of patients are cared for at home, with roughly 8 to 10 percent cared for in a dedicated hospice facility, and a smaller number of individuals who receive services in a nursing home or assisted living environment.

“Thirty-five years ago, this effort started as a very small community-based program by a like-minded group of volunteers that really saw a need to change end-oflife care, and felt that the needs of the community here were not being met. They came together in partnership with a hospital and a small group of physicians, and created Hospice of Licking County,” recalled company CEO Kerry Hamilton.

In the beginning of the 21st century, the vast majority of hospices were non-profit; however, as times changed and privatization became the norm in the sector, most shifted to for-profit models. That transition drove Hamilton to seek ways to keep the nonprofit hospice model relevant.