of ^Norflj (Earalttta
PAT McCRORY
GOVERNOR
HOSPICE AND PALLIATIVE CARE MONTH
2016
BY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
A PROCLAMATION
WHEREAS, hospice and palliative care allows individuals with life-limiting illnesses to receive professional medical
services, including pain and symptom control as well as emotional and spiritual support, to both the patient and family allowing the
patient to live in relative comfort their final days in their home of choice; and
WHEREAS, local hospice and palliative care organizations across North Carolina are staffed by skilled and compassionate
professionals and volunteers: physicians, nurses, social workers, therapists, counselors, hospice aides, and clergy who provide
comprehensive care and affirm the inherent dignity and worth of every individual; and
WHEREAS, at least 5 percent of hospice patient care hours are provided by volunteers who dedicate their time and efforts to
preserving that dignity by giving compassionate care to individuals with life-limiting illnesses and their families; the professionals and
volunteers who serve terminally ill persons and their families should be commended; and
WHEREAS, for more than 35 years, under the direction of physicians, hospices in North Carolina cared for over 50,670
patients and their family members using community volunteers and professional staff; nearly 100 hospice organizations provide
hospice care in all one hundred counties; and
WHEREAS, North Carolina hospices work collaboratively with the Medicaid program to develop and provide pediatric
palliative care for children and their families confronting and living with life-limiting illnesses; and
WHEREAS, recognizing that our nation’s veterans often have unique end-of-life needs, our hospice and palliative care
organizations celebrate the heroism of these men and women who chose to live a life of honor, duty and sacrifice in order to secure the
freedoms we cherish; and
WHEREAS, through the partnership between The Carolinas Center for Hospice and End of Life Care and local hospices,
patients and their families are assured of quality medical care, as well as strong emotional and spiritual support as they cope with life’s
transition; and
WHEREAS, counseling and bereavement care is available for family members and friends to help them cope with the losses
faced during illness and the grief experienced afterwards;
NOW, THEREFORE, 1, PAT McCRORY, Governor of the State of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim November 2016, as
“HOSPICE and PALLIATIVE CARE MONTH” in North Carolina, and commend its observance to all citizens.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, 1 have hereunto set my hand and affixed the Great Seal of the State of North Carolina at the
Capitol in Raleigh this seventeenth day of October in the year of our Lord two thousand ytosi^een, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and forty-first.
PAT McCRORY
Governor
IORY