OKEECHOBEE — When you are facing the end of your life, the last thing you want to worry about is what will happen to your best friend when you are gone. This is why Hospice of Okeechobee has begun a new program called Pet Peace of Mind.

Pet Peace of Mind is a national program providing a care model for the pets of seriously ill patients. In addition, the program helps to find homes for orphaned pets when needed.

The Pet Peace of Mind website explains, “A pet is never JUST a pet.”

Maureen Parker, Hospice of Okeechobee’s director of philanthropy, explained when people come in offering to volunteer their services, they are presented with many choices. One of these choices is to volunteer with pets, including fostering or even adopting. Most of the pets are dogs or cats, but occasionally, they even have an exotic animal they need to care for. “This really gives peace of mind to the patient and to the family that they know the animal will betaken care of.”

Adam Stanfield Chief Development Officer of Chapters Health System explained that through their volunteers, they can work with local rescues and other animal welfare organizations to help rehome the pets.

Pet Peace of Mind is just one of the many services offered by Hospice of Okeechobee.

Founded in 1983 by Fran Syfrett, Dorothy Bulger and Paul Buxton, Hospice of Okeechobee provides care and support for those with life-limiting illness, focusing on keeping the patient as comfortable as possible by controlling pain and other physical symptoms. Hospice of Okeechobee also helps with end-of-life decision making, meeting life goals, enhancing family relationships and promoting comfort. It offers medications, personal care, nursing care, social workers, chaplains, a volunteer team to help with things such as errands or just to sit and talk to patients and their families, bereavement support for up to 13 months, on-call support, a hospice residence, inpatient care, continuous care in the home and respite care. Patients are eligible for hospice care if they have been diagnosed with a life-limiting/incurable illness, their plan of care has been changed from aggressive to comfort care, and they live in Okeechobee County. Hospice care is paid for by Medicare, Medicaid or by insurance in many cases, but Hospice of Okeechobee accepts patients regardless of their ability to pay.