CLEARWATER — Suncoast Hospice, a member of Empath Health announced today it has been granted initial approval by the Agency for Health Care Administration to expand its hospice care services into Hillsborough County.

Empath Health President & CEO Rafael J. Sciullo said “We are so honored to have the opportunity to serve the residents of Hillsborough County and their families with the expert, compassionate care we’ve been providing in Pinellas County for 43 years.”

Suncoast Hospice is Pinellas County’s only non-profit hospice, was the first hospice in the Tampa Bay area and one of the first non-profit hospices in the country. In 1977, a group of like-minded volunteers came together determined to provide compassionate, quality end-of-life care so no one would die alone or in pain.

Today, Suncoast Hospice provides medical treatment, integrative medicine, volunteer support, counseling, caregiver education and advance care planning to more than 1,500 patients each day. They offer specialized services for veterans, pediatric patients, heart failure patients and have teams whose focus is expanding access for Hispanic, African-American and Jewish communities.

“It is the goal of Empath Health to continually look for ways to provide our life-changing care to more people who need it. The expansion of Suncoast Hospice into Hillsborough County allows us to touch more lives and offer residents and their families expanded access to hospice services,” Sciullo said.

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ABOUT SUNCOAST HOSPICE

Since 1977, Suncoast Hospice has been honored to be Pinellas County’s not-for-profit provider of compassionate hospice care and bereavement support services for patients and families nearing the final stages of life or grieving the deaths of loved ones. As an Empath Health member, we focus on bringing holistic comfort and dignity through our medical and integrative treatment, emotional and spiritual care and palliative and support services. Families and caregivers also are comforted with training, support and healing. Suncoast Hospice is accredited by The Joint Commission.

ABOUT EMPATH HEALTH

Empath Health is a leading Tampa Bay nonprofit, integrated network of care that provides expert medical, counseling and support services to comfort anyone facing chronic or advanced illness or grief. We began in 1977 as Suncoast Hospice and today, our care teams serve hospice, home health, palliative, veteran and pediatric patients, aging seniors, clients with HIV/AIDS, families and caregivers. We also provide advance directives assistance, HIV/AIDS prevention and education, as well as grief and crisis counseling. We are honored to serve more than 4,000 individuals a day.