Hospice as a hub: creating the future of hospice palliative care
Dr. Louie Mavrogiannis and the Dorothy Ley Community Palliative Physician Team leverage their extensive palliative care experience to lead and innovate at Dorothy Ley Hospice, expanding services through initiatives like the new ambulatory care clinic and rethinking hospice philosophy to include diverse and marginalized communities.
Our medical director, Dr. Louie Mavrogiannis (or Dr. Mav as he’s known around the hospice), has decades of palliative care experience and was one of four physicians involved with the hospice before our residence was built. Now he’s one of 11 physicians who make up the Dorothy Ley Community Palliative Physician Team. Together, they support every patient we interact with and their family, either in the community or within the residence, with 24/7 availability. Dr. Mav’s deep knowledge and leadership are critical to much of the innovation at Dorothy Ley Hospice.
In spring 2023, Dr. Mav opened an ambulatory care clinic within our residence. Each Wednesday, the clinic welcomes individuals from the community who need palliative support and are typically early in their palliative journey.
“These individuals are doing relatively well, but their family doctors might not feel they can support their needs as well as they should,” explains Dr. Mav. “Before the ambulatory care clinic, the patients would have had no choice but to go to emergency or to travel to clinics further away.”
He’s also helping us reconsider the philosophy of a hospice and who we serve. This rethinking is embedded in our strategic goal to grow our services and supports to be inclusive of everyone who is in need. “The idea that a hospice only serves a particular type of patient no longer works with our population,” Dr. Mav explains. “We are trying to expand to serve a broader demographic — newly landed immigrants and other marginalized communities — we’re looking to branch out to communities that weren’t traditionally included.”
The work to reach people not traditionally served by hospice will require partnerships, awareness building, and a commitment to fostering equity literacy among our team members. These efforts will support another strategic goal: to inspire excellence in the development of hospice palliative care across our community… and beyond. “I have always felt that the hospice is perfectly suited to be a centre of excellence — it has the talent and the resources to allow itself to rise to the top as a centre,” says Dr. Mav.
He envisions the hospice as a hub for the community, providing education, services and leadership. “Part of what we’re doing can be de-medicalized. We can provide structure and guidance to help people be comfortable supporting others,” says Dr. Mav.
Our strategic plan for 2023 to 2028 A Community of Care for Today and Tomorrow outlines how, together, we will work towards our vision of exceptional hospice palliative care for everyone in our community. We’re focused on four strategic directions:
- Inspire excellence in the development of hospice palliative care across our community… and beyond.
- Nurture, celebrate, and support our people.
- Grow our services and supports to be inclusive of everyone who is in need.
- Strengthen and sustain our capacity so that we can continue to serve our community for years to come.