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What is Hospice of Westchester?
Hospice of Westchester is a nonprofit hospice provider serving patients and families at the end of life. Its stated mission is to combine medical care with emotional and spiritual support so that patients and their loved ones can make the most of each day, and its services are organized around an individualized plan of care developed with the patient's physician. Clinicians work under a hospice medical director.
What it offers
The care team is described as highly educated professionals and volunteers, with services including:
- Social work
- Spiritual care
- Bereavement services
- Complementary care
- A "Comfort Crew"
- Pediatric hospice
- Volunteer services
The site also states core values: compassion, respect for individuality and personal choice, organizational excellence, honesty and integrity, stewardship, teamwork, and ethical relationships with community partners.
Who it is for
Families facing a terminal illness who want care at home or in a home-like setting, and who need both clinical symptom management and practical, emotional, and spiritual support. A representative family quote on the site describes being able to keep a loved one at home and have children, grandchildren, and friends visit freely.
How to decide
Use the site's own framing: it explicitly asks "How do I choose a Hospice?" and points to its difference. A practical next step is to compare local hospice options on the services above, especially bereavement support, pediatric capability, and whether volunteers and complementary care are included. For broader context on what hospice provides, see NIH and Medicare. To see events, reports, and current news from this organization, visit Hospice of Westchester.
How do I choose a hospice, and what makes Hospice of Westchester different?
Choosing a hospice comes down to three practical questions: does it serve your location, does it accept the patient's insurance or payment source, and can it deliver the specific care the patient needs now. Hospice of Westchester answers the first two with a local, Westchester-focused program; the third is where its stated service mix and values matter most.
What to check before you call any hospice
- Coverage and cost: Confirm the hospice is in network or accepted by Medicare, Medicaid or the patient's private plan, and ask what equipment, medications and respite care are included.
- Response time: Ask how quickly a nurse can reach the home at night and on weekends.
- Care team: Find out whether physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains, aides and volunteers are on staff or contracted.
- Setting: Decide whether care will be at home, in a facility or in an inpatient unit, and whether the hospice supports that setting.
- Family support: Ask about bereavement counseling, caregiver training and respite.
What Hospice of Westchester emphasizes
The organization states its mission as combining quality medical care with emotional and spiritual support so patients and loved ones can make the most of each day. Its listed services include social work, spiritual care, bereavement services, complementary care, a "Comfort Crew," pediatrics and volunteer services. Clinicians work under a hospice medical director and with the patient's own physician to build an individualized plan focused on pain control and comfort.
Its stated core values — commitment and compassion, respect for individuality and spiritual belief, honesty and integrity, stewardship, teamwork and ethical community relationships — are the kind of language families can test in a first conversation. Ask how those values show up in staffing ratios, after-hours availability and how disagreements about care are handled.
A quick comparison
| Decision factor | What to verify | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Location served | Whether the patient's address is in the service area | Determines whether visits are practical |
| Insurance | Accepted plans and out-of-pocket costs | Avoids surprise bills |
| Services offered | Social work, spiritual care, bereavement, complementary care, pediatrics | Matches care to the patient's needs |
| After-hours access | Nurse availability nights and weekends | Handles crises when they happen |
| Family support | Bereavement and caregiver programs | Supports the whole household, not just the patient |
Next step
Call Hospice of Westchester and two other local hospices with the same short list of questions, then compare answers side by side. For general guidance, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization at NHPCO and the National Institute on Aging at National Institute on Aging explain hospice eligibility and what to ask. If the patient is a child or the family needs specialized pediatric support, ask specifically about the pediatrics service and who provides it.
What services does Hospice of Westchester provide, such as social work, spiritual care, or bereavement support?
Hospice of Westchester provides end-of-life care built around an individualized plan developed with the patient's physician. Its services span social work, spiritual care, bereavement services, complementary care, a "Comfort Crew," pediatrics, and volunteer services, with clinicians working under the direction of a hospice medical director.
What each service covers
- Social work — emotional and practical support for patients and families, typically helping with care coordination, family stress and planning.
- Spiritual care — support for spiritual belief and personal choice, consistent with the organization's stated respect for individuality and diversity.
- Bereavement services — support for loved ones, including after a death; this is often the service families use longest.
- Complementary care — non-medical comfort approaches that sit alongside clinical pain and symptom management.
- Comfort Crew — an added layer of comfort-focused support for patients.
- Pediatrics — hospice care adapted to children and their families.
- Volunteer services — trained volunteers providing companionship and practical help.
How to decide what you need first
Most families start with the clinical question (pain and symptom control) and then discover the non-clinical services matter just as much. If you are the primary caregiver, ask specifically how social work and volunteer hours are scheduled, and what bereavement support looks like after the patient dies. If the patient is a child, confirm pediatric experience directly rather than assuming it.
A useful next step: call and ask for the intake or referral process, then request a written care plan outline naming which disciplines will visit and how often. For comparison while you research, see Hospice Of Westchester and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization at NHPCO.
How can I refer a loved one to Hospice of Westchester or start the admission process?
Hospice of Westchester does not publish a self-service referral form or online admission portal on its home page, so the practical route is a direct conversation with the organization. The site presents its mission, core values, and a service list—social work, spiritual care, bereavement services, complementary care, a Comfort Crew, pediatrics, and volunteer services—which tells you what a patient and family can expect once enrolled, but the "how to start" mechanics sit with its intake team rather than the page.
The usual first step
Call the hospice directly and say you want to explore a referral for a specific person. Have basic information ready: the patient's name, age, address, the primary diagnosis, the name and phone number of the treating physician, and who holds medical decision-making authority. Hospice eligibility generally hinges on a physician's prognosis of a life-limiting illness with a limited life expectancy, so the patient's own doctor is almost always part of the conversation—either you or the hospice will need to loop that physician in.
From there the typical sequence looks like this:
- Initial call. You describe the situation; the hospice screens for appropriateness and explains coverage.
- Physician order. The patient's physician (or the hospice medical director) certifies the terminal diagnosis.
- Assessment visit. A nurse or intake clinician meets the patient, often at home, to evaluate needs and explain what the team provides.
- Care plan. The interdisciplinary team—working under the hospice medical director, as the site describes—builds an individualized plan focused on pain control and comfort.
- Start of services. Visits begin, and the family gets a named point of contact.
Who can make the referral
Anyone can typically raise the possibility—a spouse, adult child, friend, or the patient's physician. The patient's consent matters, but if the person lacks capacity, the healthcare proxy or legal decision-maker acts. If you are not the decision-maker, expect the hospice to verify authority before sharing details.
Questions worth asking on that first call
- Which counties and ZIP codes do you serve, and how quickly can you assess?
- How do you handle nights, weekends, and crises—is there 24-hour phone support?
- What is covered, and what might the family pay for out of pocket?
- Can you provide bereavement support to the family after the death, and for how long?
- Do you have pediatric expertise if the patient is a child?
If you are still comparing hospices
Because this decision is local and time-sensitive, gather two or three options and compare them on responsiveness, after-hours coverage, and the specific services your family needs. The site's own framing—"How do I choose a Hospice?"—is the right question to ask each provider. For general education on what hospice is and how referral works, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization at NHPCO and the Medicare hospice benefit page at Medicare.gov are useful starting points. If you are in Westchester County, New York, calling Hospice of Westchester directly is the fastest way to learn its current intake process and coverage area.
How does Hospice of Westchester support families after a patient's death through bereavement services?
Hospice of Westchester lists bereavement services as one of its core service lines, alongside social work, spiritual care, complementary care, the Comfort Crew, pediatrics and volunteer services. The stated mission is to combine quality medical care with emotional and spiritual support so patients and their loved ones can make the most of each day — and bereavement support is the part of that mission that continues after the patient has died.
What the site tells you
- Bereavement services are named explicitly among the organization's services, not presented as an optional add-on.
- They sit within a team-based model: a hospice medical director oversees clinicians, and social work, spiritual care and volunteers work alongside them on an individualized plan of care.
- The site frames care around the family unit as well as the patient, using a family member's account of being able to stay at home with her husband and have children, grandchildren and friends visit freely.
What bereavement support typically involves
Hospices generally provide grief support to family members for a period after death, often around a year, at no separate charge. Common forms include phone check-ins, one-to-one counseling, support groups, remembrance events and referrals to community grief programs. Because Hospice of Westchester names bereavement services as a distinct service and describes spiritual care and social work as part of the same team, families can reasonably expect grief support to be woven into the same relationship rather than handed off to strangers.
How to use this if you are choosing a hospice
Ask specific questions before enrollment, while the patient is still living:
- Who provides bereavement support — social workers, chaplains, trained volunteers, or a dedicated bereavement counselor?
- How long does support last after death, and does it extend to grandchildren, siblings or friends?
- Are there in-person groups, individual sessions and annual remembrance gatherings?
- Is there a separate children's or teen grief program?
- What happens if a family member needs counseling beyond what the hospice offers?
Bereavement care is often the least scrutinized part of hospice, because families choose a provider under pressure and only discover the quality of grief support months later. Treat the bereavement question as a deciding factor, not an afterthought.
For comparison while you research, the national hospice benefit structure and consumer guidance are outlined by Medicare and National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. Local New York providers in the same region include Visiting Nurse Service of New York and Calvary Hospital, which can be useful benchmarks when asking Hospice of Westchester about the scope and duration of its bereavement program.
What volunteer opportunities or fundraising events does Hospice of Westchester offer?
Hospice of Westchester lists Volunteer Services as one of its core service areas, alongside social work, spiritual care, bereavement services, complementary care, a "Comfort Crew," and pediatrics. That tells you volunteers are treated as part of the care team rather than an afterthought, but the homepage itself does not spell out individual volunteer roles, training requirements, or time commitments. The practical next step is to contact the organization directly through its website to ask what current openings exist and what onboarding involves.
Fundraising and community events
The site's News and Events section names two specific gatherings:
- Hospice Fall Fete @ Sam's — a dine-out fundraiser at Sam's of Gedney Way, listed for October 21st, 2026, 5:00 PM–8:30 PM. This is the lowest-commitment way to support the organization: you eat, a portion of the proceeds goes to hospice care.
- "In Celebration" Gala 2026 — a formal benefit event, typically the larger fundraising occasion of the year.
The site also publishes an annual report and maintains a Donate Now option for people who would rather give than attend an event.
How to choose between getting involved and giving
| If you want to… | Best fit | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Help patients and families directly | Volunteer Services | Screening, training, and scheduling; ask about roles before committing |
| Support without a long-term commitment | Fall Fete dine-out | Show up during the listed hours, no training needed |
| Make a larger financial contribution | "In Celebration" Gala or direct donation | Ticket or gift; gala is an evening event |
| Understand the organization first | Annual report and mission pages | Read before deciding where your time or money goes |
A concrete scenario: someone in Westchester County who lost a parent in hospice care often wants to give back but is unsure whether they can handle bedside visits. That person could start with the Fall Fete, then ask about bereavement or office-based volunteer roles, which are usually less emotionally demanding than direct patient contact.
For comparison, other regional hospice organizations publish similar event calendars and volunteer pages, though details vary by provider. Because event dates and volunteer needs change frequently, confirm current information with Hospice of Westchester at Hospice Of Westchester before making plans.
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