(Image Caption: Bay Bluffs Administrator Lisa Ashley and Friends of Hospice of Little Traverse Bay members Louise Graham and Dave McBride cut a ribbon to celebrate the opening of three suites dedicated to hospice care at Bay Bluffs in Harbor Springs.)
As published on
Three new beds for hospice care opened in Harbor Springs today marking the end of a year-long pivot for an end-of-life care organization in the region.
Last year, McLaren Health System closed hospice facilities in Petoskey and Cheboygan. Combined, the facilities provided more than a dozen beds for hospice in the region.
At the time, McLaren called the decision to close “difficult” but necessary due to staffing constraints and said it would move to prioritizing outpatient hospice care – when a nurse visits patients in the home rather than a facility.
But a group of advocates in Petoskey said residential hospice is needed in the region – especially for people with serious terminal illnesses.
David McBride leads the newly renamed group, Friends of Hospice of Little Traverse Bay. It used to be called the Friends of Hiland Cottage for the facility in Petoskey. The group fundraised to build and support the building in the early 2000s.
McBride said after McLaren closed the Hiland Cottage, his group needed to think creatively and come up with a plan.
“We knew that no matter what corporate slogans they put together, end of life care in a care facility was going to be needed in our community,” he said. “You can’t just turn the dial and it’s gone.”
That’s what led to a partnership with skilled nursing facility Bay Bluffs in Harbor Springs. It’s the Emmet County Medical Care Facility and owned by the county health department.
Bay Bluffs is not a licensed hospice provider but it is able to outsource hospice from other companies while providing rooms for families to gather with their loved ones and trained nursing.
This newer model of end-of-life care is a growing trend and has been tried in other places such as Arbor Hospice in Ann Arbor which closed its residential facility in 2022.
Bay Bluffs is a certified Medicare and Medicaid nursing home – meaning insurance providers can cover costs of care. If paid out-of-pocket, the suites cost $365 per day.
In a press release, Bay Bluffs Administrator Lisa Ashley said she’s grateful for the community’s involvement.
“We’ve seen our neighbors come together in remarkable ways, sharing their time, talents and resources to ensure these suites provide the peace and dignity that every individual deserves at the end of life,” she said.
The three new suites house one patient each with a family room for visitors. McBride said up to 11 rooms in Bay Bluffs will be renovated and opened for hospice care in the coming year.
Jeff Hall is a member of the Friends of Hospice of Little Traverse Bay. The Hiland House was named after his father who was instrumental in fundraising for the building in the early 2000s.
Hall says he’s grateful supporters were able to once again rally to provide in-patient hospice care in the region.
“I know how proud he’d be to see, in the face of adversity, the community band together, come up with a plan and execute on the plan,” he said.