Hospice advocacy group unveiled
Most hospice managers outside the state of Michigan would have been unfamiliar with the name of Ron Panzer, former hospice professional and founder of the new National Hospice-Patient Advocacy Association of Rockford, MI, when his letter to the editor was published in the Washington Post. Panzer applauded a June 14 article in the Post critical of the hospice industry ("Hospices big business, thanks to Medicare" see also Hospice Management Advisor, August 1998, pp. 103-104) and urged patients and families to learn more about their rights in hospice.
If Panzer gets his way, his new group could become a national consumer advocacy watchdog group focused on excesses by hospices and "rogue hospice administrators." The association currently is organized as a sole proprietorship, owned by Panzer, but it is in the process of filing to become a directorship nonprofit, he says, adding that he has a mailing list in the hundreds, most of them in Michigan.
Panzer's group was formed for the purpose of helping to educate the public and patients and families about what hospice is - and what services hospices should provide, he says. "Knowledge is power. Whether for-profit or nonprofit, it depends on administrators and boards to make sure the hospice is providing the services that are required," Panzer explains. "I'm concerned about hospice corporations not providing services patients are entitled to. There are many wonderful hospice programs out there, but also rogue hospice administrators who put profit over the needs of dying patients, who are in a very vulnerable state."
Terry Barclay, public relations spokeswoman for Hospice of Michigan, Southfield, where Panzer used to work, says her agency has investigated every one of his concerns and complaints about her agency, "and found them to be groundless. I don't have much sense of how much of a 'group' his group is. But we take any complaints and concerns very seriously," she says.
You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
- Award-winning Medical Content
- Latest Advances & Development in Medicine
- Unbiased Content