Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Gives Grant To Increase Hispanic Awareness Of Hospice Care

Hospice by the Sea, a Boca Raton, Fla.-based hospice care center, on Sept. 3 received more than $1.1 million in grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and other groups to help "break down misconceptions" among South Florida Hispanics about hospice care, the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel reports. Hospice by the Sea will receive about $500,000 from the foundation over the next three years, $300,000 in matching funds from the Quantum Foundation in West Palm Beach, Fla., and $100,000 from the Allegany Franciscan Foundation. The remaining funding comes from eight other charities. The grant money will go to retain community groups -- Hispanic Unity in Broward County and Hispanic Human Resources Council in Palm Beach County -- to do outreach work among South Florida's Hispanic population, including giving presentations at community centers and churches; printing materials in Spanish; and advertising the benefits of hospice care. While less than 2% of patients using Hospice by the Sea are Hispanic and only 3% of Hispanics nationwide are hospice clients, Hispanics comprise 12% of the U.S. population and 17% of the population in Broward and Palm Beach counties. Hispanic families often believe that hospice care is a service that "violates the tradition of caring for dying relatives at home," the Sun-Sentinel reports. According to Kerry Rodriguez, a member of the hospice's Hispanic Advisory Committee, "We have to spread the word that hospice is usually done in the home and is a good service" (LaMendola, Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, 9/4).