Home bound for over two years—a hospice patient finally gets his wish.

With advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and on hospice with CNS since late 2019, Orval Hayes had been bed-ridden for two years, and was unable to leave his home since before the pandemic. One of our CNS chaplains, Roy Olson has visited Orval weekly for most of this time. Roy has enjoyed these visits and shares, “Orval is such a neat guy. People like him always bring your day back up—he’s that encouraging. I always save my visit with him for the last one in the day because he is such a joy to be around.”

The 2021 year was a whirlwind of activity and we are very proud of the work we were able to accomplish with amazing support from our community—you! We continue to grow our impact in the community through the CNS Charitable Care Program.

The CNS Honor Salute program honors CNS hospice patients who are veterans. It is a simple but powerful tribute of appreciation for the veteran’s service to our country. Most often it is the last moment of public thanks they will receive.

Honoring our veteran hospice patients’ sacrifice and service one last time

The CNS Honor Salute program recognizes veterans who are on hospice by providing a simple but powerful tribute of appreciation for the veteran’s service to our country. Active-duty or retired military personnel in dress uniform join CNS associates at the patient’s home to conduct a formal ceremony. Veterans are presented with a personalized appreciation plaque, military service lapel pin, and an American flag. Military personnel give the salute command followed by a salute to the patient, which is returned by the patient when able.

Since our founding in 1928, Community Nursing Services (CNS) has always cared for University of Utah patients transitioning home from hospital care. We are proud of our shared goals for exceptional patient care and outcomes and have long partnered with the University of Utah Health system to care for our community. We are thrilled to announce that in April 2020, our public-private partnership became official after a rigorous state bid process and legal review. This formal affiliation has already shown benefits to patients who require Home Health or Hospice care. The partnership has and will continue to increase collaboration, mutual support, and patient referrals to CNS while also allowing each organization to continue to operate autonomously.