National Organizations Partner to Offer Spanish-speaking Families Information on End-of-Life Care
Cuidando con Cariño, Compassionate Care HelpLine Goes into Service on August 3, 2006
For Immediate Release
Tuesday, August 8, 2006
Contact: Jon Radulovic, The
National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, (202) 422-4673 <jradulovic@nhpco.org>
Alexandria, VA –– Families that have a loved one facing a serious or life-threatening illness now have a new resource to go to for free information. Cuidando con Cariño, Compassionate Care HelpLine is a toll-free phone line that offers information and resources for people living with or caring for someone with a serious illness.
The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) has partnered with the National Alliance for Hispanic Health (NAHH) to create the Spanish-language HelpLine, Cuidando con Cariño, Compassionate Care. This new service was launched on August 3, 2006. Both organizations are committed to providing quality service to Spanish-speaking callers.
People calling the HelpLine will reach bilingual information specialists who will answer questions about hospice and palliative care, helping a loved one with grief and loss, family caregiving, and advance health care planning. Important bilingual written information will also be provided free of charge.
"One of the most important issues all families will face is end-of-life care. And while most of us do not want to deal with the issue of death, we all need to be informed. Many families today are often caught unprepared when dealing with a loved one’s serious illness. Cuidando con Cariño, Compassionate Care will make it easier to navigate the health care system for end-of-life care. The new HelpLine represents our continued commitment to improve the health and well being of Hispanics through all the stages of life." said Jane L. Delgado, president and CEO of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health.
The Cuidando con Cariño, Compassionate Care helpline is funded by a grant from the Public Welfare Foundation and has been developed through a partnership between the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization and the National Alliance for Hispanic Health. The grant is also funding the development of educational fact sheets in Spanish and English on topics such as hospice and palliative care, advance care planning and grief and loss. NHPCO and NAHH will work together to create these new materials.
"Hospices across the country are committed to serving all members of their community," said J. Don Schumacher, NHPCO president and CEO. "Our hope is that hospices as well as other health care providers and community service organizations will help us promote these essential resources." The Cuidando con Cariño, Compassionate Care HelpLine is part of the continued work of Caring Connections, NHPCO’s consumer and community engagement initiative which is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in Princeton, NJ. NHPCO is hoping to secure additional funding to launch a Spanish-language Web site, similar to the successful www.caringinfo.org Web site that has received more than two million visitors in less than 18 months. Caringinfo.org offers free state-specific advance directives and free brochures on a range of end-of-life topics.
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