Is The Anne McGraw House a hospital or nursing home?
It is neither. The residential section of the building will be a homelike setting for terminally ill people who, for a variety of reasons, cannot be cared for in their own home. A professional staff will provide 24-hour, seven-days-a-week hospice care in a comfortable setting where families and friends are welcome to visit at all times. The Anne McGraw House will be a place where families can feel “at home.”

Will The Anne McGraw House replace the current home care service?
No, HospiceCare in The Berkshires, Inc., will continue to provide its core home care services. The new residential opportunity is to meet the needs of those whose family or medical situation does not support home care.

Why is The Anne McGraw House needed?
The need for hospice services is growing, across the country and locally. Berkshire County does not have a specialized setting for people unable to spend their final days in their own homes.

Who will use The Anne McGraw House?
The The Anne McGraw House is open to anyone with a life expectancy of six months or less and who chooses care with us. In addition to Berkshire County, it will be open to residents of western Massachusetts, as well as southern Vermont, eastern New York and northwest Connecticut.

Why not provide 24-hour care at home instead of at The Anne McGraw House?
There are certain medical situations that are too complex to be addressed at home. There is also a major cost factor and a shortage of qualified nurses to cover all the one-to-one care needs for everyone.

Why are only 12 beds proposed?
The Board of Directors of HospiceCare engaged a national firm to conduct a needs assessment. Their recommendation was to build a 12-bed facility. Based on both national trends as well as regional demographics including our increasing average daily census, they determined that on an annual basis between 220 and 275 individuals would choose a The Anne McGraw House residential option. At 80% occupancy and an average 14-day length of stay, a 12-bed house would accommodate 250 patients a year.