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Our Locations

Are you looking for care for yourself or a loved one?

If so, please call 800.653.4490 and press option 2. A member of our care team will be happy to assist you in finding a location near you. If you are a physician seeking referral assistance, please call 888.449.4121.

Honored and privileged to serve more than 60 Ohio counties.

Ohio's Hospice at United Church Homes

Serving: Stark and Washington Counties

Administrative Office

Chapel Hill
12200 Strausser St. NW
Canal Fulton, OH 44614
Phone: 330.264.4899

Administrative Office

200 Timberline Dr. #1212
Marietta, OH 45750
Phone: 740.629.9990

Ohio's Hospice | Cincinnati

Administrative Office

11013 Montgomery Rd.
Cincinnati, OH 45249
1.800.653.4490

Ohio's Hospice | Dayton

Serving: Logan, Champaign, Clark, Preble, Montgomery, Greene, Butler, Warren and Hamilton Counties

Inpatient Care Center

324 Wilmington Ave.
Dayton, OH 45420
Phone: 937.256.4490
1.800.653.4490

Administrative Office

7575 Paragon Rd.
Dayton, OH 45459
Phone: 937.256.4490
1.800.653.4490

Ohio's Hospice | Franklin

Serving: Butler and Warren Counties

Inpatient Care Center

5940 Long Meadow Dr.
Franklin, OH 45005
Phone: 513.422.0300

Ohio's Hospice | Marysville

Serving: Union and Madison Counties

Administrative Office

779 London Ave.
Marysville, OH 43040
Phone: 937.644.1928

Ohio's Hospice | Middleburg Heights

Administrative Office

18051 Jefferson Park Rd.
Middleburg Heights, OH 44130
1.833.444.4177

Ohio's Hospice | Mt. Gilead

Serving: Morrow County

Administrative Office

228 South St.
Mt. Gilead, OH 43338
Phone: 419.946.9822

Ohio's Hospice | Newark

Serving: Crawford, Marion, Morrow, Knox, Coshocton, Delaware, Licking, Muskingum, Franklin, Fairfield, Perry and Hocking Counties

Administrative Office

2269 Cherry Valley Rd.
Newark, OH 43055
Phone: 740.788.1400

Inpatient Care Center

1320 West Main St.
Newark, OH 43055
Phone: 740.344.0379

Ohio's Hospice at
The Ohio State University
Wexner Medical Center

410 W 10th Ave - 7th Floor
Columbus, OH 43210
Phone: 614.685.0001

Ohio's Hospice at
Licking Memorial Hospital

1320 West Main St.
Newark, OH 43055
Phone: 740.344.0379

Ohio's Hospice | New Philadelphia

Serving: Tuscarawas, Stark, Carroll, Columbiana, Coshocton, Holmes Counties

Inpatient Care Center

716 Commercial Ave. SW
New Philadelphia, OH 44663
Phone: 330.343.7605

Ohio's Hospice | Springfield

Serving: Clark, Champaign and Logan Counties

Administrative Office

1830 N. Limestone St.
Springfield, OH 45503
Phone: 937.390.9665

Ohio's Hospice | Troy

Serving: Allen, Auglaize, Darke, Mercer, Miami, Shelby, and Van Wert Counties

Inpatient Care Center

3230 N. Co. Rd. 25A
Troy, OH 45373
Phone: 937.335.5191

Ohio's Hospice | Washington Court House

Serving: Fayette, Clinton, Pickaway, Ross, Highland, Pike, Clermont, Brown and Adams Counties

Administrative Office

222 N. Oakland Ave.
Washington Court House, OH 43160
Phone: 740.335.0149

Ohio's Hospice | Wilmington

Serving: Clinton County

Administrative Office

1669 Rombach Ave.
Wilmington, OH 45177
Phone: 937.382.5400
Fax: 937.383.3898

Ohio's Hospice | Wooster

Serving: Cuyahoga, Lake, Geauga, Lorain, Medina, Summit, Richland, Ashland, Wayne, Stark, Holmes and Tuscarawas Counties

Inpatient Care Center

1900 Akron Rd.
Wooster, OH 44691
Phone: 330.264.4899

It’s Not Like the Movies

Death is a natural part of life. All of us are born; all of us will pass away.  But few of us know what death actually looks like. Many elderly people now live alone or in nursing homes, and death often occurs in institutions. Death has been hidden from us.

 

It’s not like in the movies

To compound this, when we do see death, it’s often in the movies. And what we see in the movies is dramatized for effect.

Imagine a movie unfolding. We see an actor awake, alert, eating a meal, and talking, in full possession of his faculties. Next thing we know, he’s in bed. He says goodbye, sighs … and it’s over.  We don’t see him in any pain or going through a slow decline.

 

The process of a natural death

I’ve been in medical practice for 20 years, and I’ve spent 8 years working in hospice and palliative medicine. In all my time, I have never seen a death like that.  Instead, what I see is usually a slow decline that happens over the course of one to two weeks. I see the patient sleeping more, up to a full 24 hours a day—until eventually, they are no longer responsive. Eating becomes minimal and then stops all together.

More often than not, the patient becomes congested and often experiences pain and shortness of breath.  Some patients become noticeably agitated and reluctant to calm down.  Others require medicine in order to remain calm, comfortable, and free of pain.

 

Digestion becomes a concern

Also, just as the body gets weaker, the swallowing muscles get weaker also, making it difficult for the patient to properly digest food.  Instead of food going into the stomach, it can end up in the lungs as the patient aspirates—that is, breathes it in. Once aspiration starts, it’s difficult if not impossible to stop, and it’s made worse if fluid or food is forced.

Forcing food and/or hydration can also cause nausea, abdominal pain, and shortness of breath. And IV feeding, tube feeding, and IV nutrition can also increase congestion.

 

What is the best option?

What happens when a person sleeps the entire day, is no longer responsive, and is no longer eating?  There are many options of treatment with aggressive medicine, but which course of recovery is the best if aggressive treatment doesn’t make your loved one better?

This decision depends on multiple factors.  Is there hope of a full recovery?  Are there any symptoms or side effects from the treatments?  What does the patient want to do?

Although it is often a difficult decision to cease treatment—to stop IV fluid, tube feeding, or TPN, for example—I have seen that patients are more comfortable when they pass away naturally. For thousands of years, the process of passing away would start when people could no longer swallow.  This natural death may  take days or may take weeks.

No, a natural death is not like what you see in the movies, but it can be comfortable. No matter what a person’s story is or why they end up at hospice, we can help keep them comfortable and we will care for their families with compassion. That’s our mission and that’s why we’re here.

 

 

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Wendy Schmitz
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