Tillery Compassionate Care is the first in North Carolina Certified as Age-Friendly Care at Home
June 4, 2024 (ALBEMARLE, NC) – Tillery Compassionate Care has been officially named an Age-Friendly Care at Home organization by Community Health Accreditation Partner, Inc., (CHAP). Tillery Compassionate Care is the first hospice in North Carolina to achieve Age-Friendly Care at Home certification.
CHAP’s Age-Friendly Care at Home certification demonstrates Tillery Compassionate Care’s value to its community, patients and referral partners, showcasing its commitment to excellence. “The 4Ms framework is evidence-based care and addresses the unique needs of older adults which leads to higher quality of life,” said Teresa Harbour, Chief Operating Officer with CHAP.
Age-Friendly Care Health Systems is an initiative of The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the Catholic Health Association of the United States that follows an essential set of best practices, causes no harm and aligns with what matters to the older adult and their family caregivers. Age-Friendly Care is health care that addresses a patient’s unique needs and wants, aiming to help the patient enjoy a better quality of life. It is safe and based on what research shows are the most important things to pay attention to as we get older- the 4Ms: what Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility.
Patient Care Manager & Director of Nursing of Tillery Compassionate Care, Renee Morton views Age-Friendly Care as an approach to care that is “focused specifically on the needs of people as they age in their home setting,” she says. “Our staff was already focusing on what’s most important to our patients along with addressing medications, mentation, and mobility in each visit. Achieving this certification was another way for us to validate our care to our patients.”
During visits with our patients, our staff focuses on the following essential aspects of patient care, integrating the 4Ms framework into delivery of care.
- What Matters: Understand patient’s goals. It’s important to hear patient and family concerns, goals, wishes, needs, and experiences.
- Medication: Educate the patient and family on their medications. Providers should ensure that patients and their families understand the medications they are taking, the side effects they can have, and the risk versus reward of taking them at the end of life.
- Mentation: Understand mentation. This knowledge helps to lower the risk of changes in memory or mood.
- Mobility. Maximize mobility. Ensure the patient has as much mobility and independence as possible, which could mean the strength and balance to safely move around their house.
“What a tremendous honor to be the first hospice organization in North Carolina to be recognized as an Age-Friendly Care provider,” said Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Lori Thayer. “We are proud to have enriched our organization’s care and credibility.”
About CHAP
CHAP is an independent, nonprofit organization accrediting providers of home and community-based care. Founded in 1965, CHAP was the first to recognize the need for and value of home and community-based care standards and accreditation. As a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)–approved accrediting organization, CHAP surveys organizations providing home health, hospice, and home medical equipment services to establish if Medicare Conditions of Participation and DMEPOS Quality Standard are met and recommend certification to CMS. CHAP’s purpose is to partner with organizations nationwide to advance quality in the delivery of care and services in the home and community.
Teresa Harbour, Chief Operating Officer
About Tillery Compassionate Care
Hospice of Stanly County, Inc. dba Tillery Compassionate Care, a nonprofit organization, was founded through the grassroots efforts of people in the community and it continues to be governed locally by a board of directors. Through the generosity of many, Tillery Compassionate Care has been able to provide care to nearly 7,600 terminally ill residents since 1981. At Tillery Compassionate Care, we spark inspiration, hope, and peace enabling individuals with serious illness to embrace their spirit of life. More information about hospice, palliative care and advance care planning is available from Tillery Compassionate Care by calling 704.983.4216 or by visiting tillerycompassionatecare.org.
