Saturday, June 1, 2019

End of Life Community Supports - Caring Matters

CaringMatters (founded as Hospice Caring in 1989) serves children, adults and families facing life-
threatening illness and experiencing the death of a loved one. CaringMatters also increases community awareness and advocacy about end-of-life concerns, advance care planning and grief. CaringMatters serves the culturally and economically diverse residents of Montgomery County, Maryland.

Their small staff and a large volunteer community provide adult and child bereavement and caregiving direct services. All volunteers are screened and have completed at least three full days of specialized training; ongoing training and support are given. Programs are regularly evaluated for their impact on people CaringMatters serves.

All services are delivered free-of-charge; none are covered by Medicare or other public or private insurances.

Caring Matters has a range of hands on help and support groups:

Hospice Care
CaringMatters is licensed by the state of Maryland as a limited hospice care program. While they do not provide medical services, there trained volunteers supplement medical hospice and support patients who are still pursuing curative treatment. All services are free of charge.
  • Services include but are not limited to:
  • Companionship and socialization
  • Emotional support
  • Respite for family caregivers
  • Limited transportation within Montgomery County, MD
  • Errands, meal preparation and other household tasks
  • Accompaniment on outings with ambulatory clients

Support Groups
Surviving the death of a loved one can be challenging emotionally and on a practical level. The pain and distress of grief is often misunderstood by those around us, adding to our sense of uncertainty at a vulnerable time in our life.
Support groups that are accepting new members:
  • Spousal/Partner Loss, Age 50-70, Gaithersburg, Monday Evening
  • Spousal/Partner Loss Age 50+, Gaithersburg, Monday Evening
  • Spousal/Partner Loss, Chevy Chase, Thursday Daytime
  • Spousal/Partner Loss, Silver Spring, Monday Daytime
  • Spousal/Partner Loss, Wheaton, Thursday Daytime
  • Spousal/Partner Loss, Leisure World, Alternate Tuesdays Daytime
  • Spousal/Partner Loss, Leisure World, Alternate Thursdays Daytime
  • Suicide Loss, Gaithersburg, Tuesday Evening
  • Parent Loss, Gaithersburg, Thursday Evening
Click here to learn more about CaringMatters and its community based supports

Email: caring@caringmatters.org
Phone: 301-869-HOPE (4673)