By Margaret Cogswell CEO of Hospice of the Panhandle As a nurse and hospice provider I have always recognized the need to have good medical care. I’ve had my check-ups and recommended screening tests since I was in my 20s. As I think back over that time, I’ve noticed the changes in those visits. I […]

Ryan McCarthy MD, WVU Medicine November is National Hospice Month. Let’s take a moment and reflect on how our very own Hospice of the Panhandle enriches our lives. I celebrate the gift of Hospice every month because, as a doctor with WVU Medicine, I am lucky to work alongside these amazing folks daily. These humble […]

KEARNEYSVILLE – Hospice of the Panhandle has joined the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI), a national nonprofit collaborative that focuses on high quality care for patients in the last stages of life. NPHI, which is made up of 85 plus not-for-profit, community-integrated hospice and palliative care providers, is dedicated to ensuring patients […]

By Maria Lorensen Development Director Theirs was a romance for the ages. They were married more than 58 years, raised a family, farmed the land, got involved in local politics and lived in the only house that Reva Mickey called home. They were hard-working, decent Jefferson County salt-of-the earth people, who loved their community and […]

By Ashley Horst Fundraising & Marketing Coordinator It seems appropriate that today, Independence Day, we talk about freedom and independence – and in the story below, how that is impacted by aging. People with serious illnesses often lose their independence. Depending on the illness, this may happen suddenly—like when a stroke occurs—or gradually as the […]

Two longtime Hospice of the Panhandle employees have been promoted. Nikki Bigiarelli, most recently the clinical director and earlier nursing home team manager, has been named chief clinical officer. Danielle Ruble, previously the access team manager and more recently the assistant clinical director and quality assurance manager, has been named clinical director. Bigiarelli first came […]

By Margaret Cogswell, CEO Ever since March 2020, the word “normal” has been in our vocabulary much more often.  At first, we talked about a return to normal; then, we shifted to a hope that we could return to normal. But before long, we started to talk about a new normal.  We envisioned a time when […]

By Renee Bledsoe LPN, CHPLN Talking about children in hospice care is tough. What is tougher is being the parent or caregiver of a child who is very seriously ill and not having the opportunity to give that child the life that they thought they’d have together. The goal of hospice care for pediatric patients […]

By Tony Pirrone, Hospice Chaplain During my first two years as a clinical chaplain at Hospice of the Panhandle, I provided spiritual support to a multitude of patients with an average age of well over 70. Entering my third year though, I wasn’t ready for a new experience—a pediatric patient. I had never worked with […]