At The Center Of Care

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

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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.