Donita Wolf is laying the groundwork for a future expansion of Golden Belt Home Health & Hospice into two more central Kansas counties.

As director of the non-profit agency, Wolf said she is excited about being able to help more families with home-health and hospice services.

"We know there is an under-served population in our area," Wolf commented. "These folks deserve the care and treatment we can provide.

"It is so important for patients to be able to stay in their own homes whenever possible," she added. "And our agency can provide the quality services that will allow them to do that."

GBHH&H has been in operation since 1979. It is owned by Central Kansas Medical Center and will grow even after the hospital becomes St. Rose Ambulatory & Surgery Center on May 1.

Currently, GBHH&H serves all of Barton County and portions of Pawnee County. After the expansion in upcoming months, it will be available in the remainder of Pawnee County, all of Rush County and portions of Stafford County.

Additional clinical and office staff will be hired to accommodate the increase in the number of patients.

GBHH&H has been serving between 350 and 400 patients annually. After reviewing area demographics, Wolf predicts that it will add about 240 home-health patients and 30 hospice patients a year.

"We anticipate this will be a most-welcome service in the area," Wolf said. "We continue to get calls from people who simply cannot find these critical services and it will be great to be able to accommodate them."

Home-health services involve nurses, therapists and aides who help the patient maintain or restore their health. The goal is to minimize the effects of an illness or disability, and prevent further health concerns.

Hospice care entails pain control, symptom management, and spiritual, emotional and grief support. The hospice staff collaborates with physicians to provide compassionate, quality care, Wolf said.

"Our overall mission," she continued, "is to meet the physical and emotional needs of the frail, elderly, sick and disabled, and those who are facing the end of life. We provide short-term rehabilitation services that allow home-health patients to stay in their homes. Our hospice care offers comfort and meaning for those at the end stage of life."

The director also noted that GBHH&H services qualify for payment by Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance.

"It is just heartbreaking that these services have been unavailable to some in central Kansas," Wolf added. "As a non-profit agency, we want to do all we can to alleviate this concern."