COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS
Partnership with Local Church Helps HRC to Broaden Reach in African American Community
Nationwide, African Americans are underserved by hospice. Hospice of Rockingham County has always exceeded the national average of approximately 8% but we knew there was still work to be done to reach more of our community. Through a staff connection, HRC reached out a couple of years ago to members of Zion Baptist Church in Reidsville, NC (several of whom had been served by HRC in the past) and solicited the group’s input about perceptions and misconceptions in the community that could cause African Americans to be hesitant to seek hospice care in general and, specifically, hesitant to receive hospice care at home. Traditionally, HRC served more African Americans in Gibson House than in their own homes. This past year, we sought their input on a current commercial and used their suggestions in creating a new spot. From the diversity of staff members in the commercial to projecting a home care setting more so than Gibson House, we took their input to heart. We were thrilled to have five church members in the new commercial - with one member even inviting us into her home to shoot several scenes. The new commercial began running at the beginning of July, essentially the last quarter of our fiscal year. Shown in the graph below, we saw a definite increase in the percentage of African American patients served as well as those patients served at home after the new commercial aired.
Oct - June 2023
Jul - Sept 2023
100%
86.36%
73.21%
80%
60%
40%
26.79%
18.64%
20%
12.76%
13.64%
0%
% of African American Pts Served
% of African American Pts. Served at Home
% of African American Pts. Served in Gibson House
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