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When people think of hospice, they often assume the majority of patients are elderly. Especially in Florida, this assumption is typically accurate. A recent study by the Office of Program Policy Analysis & Government Accountability (OPPAGA) showed that in 2009, 84 percent of Florida hospice programs’ patients were 65 years old and up. As Florida continues to have one of the highest senior populations in the country, this statistic should come as no surprise.
 
What is interesting, however, is that Gold Coast Hospice’s patient base is only comprised of 58 percent seniors. That is a significant differential that Lynda Friedman, administrator of Gold Coast, says might be attributable to Gold Coast’s association with Broward Health.
 
“Gold Coast Hospice has the unique opportunity to serve a different segment of South Florida’s population. Because we are part of Broward Health and work closely with Broward General Medical Center and the system’s other facilities, we receive a number of cases through the Comprehensive Cancer Center. Unfortunately, many of these patients are younger, but we are here to support them and their families through this difficult stage of their lives,” Friedman says.
 
Not only does Gold Coast care for more individuals younger than 65, they also serve a greater number of cancer patients. Florida hospices, according to OPPAGA, see 35 percent of their patients with a cancer diagnosis; Gold Coasts’ patient base is 44 percent cancer diagnosis.
 
“We are privileged to serve these individuals,” says Broward Health CEO/President Frank Nask. “We have a dedicated team that has worked together for a long time and have become specialists in this area. Their sincere interest in helping patients, as well as patient families, is evident in the 97 percent of our patients or their family members who would recommend Gold Coast Hospice services to others.”
 
Gold Coast Hospice also is known for taking on adolescent patients, some only days old, who are referred from Chris Evert Children’s Hospital and other Broward Health medical centers. And as Gold Coast’s refurbished patient rooms at Broward General Medical Center come to completion in early 2012, Gold Coast will also look to expand its pediatric hospice services.
 
“Although a heartbreaking challenge, pediatric hospice care is a service needed in Broward County. No matter the age, Gold Coast is committed to providing for each patient’s physical, emotional and spiritual needs, as well as the needs of the family, during the stress of critical illness and bereavement,” Friedman says.