Hospice of Palm Beach County

Hospice of Palm Beach County was a nonprofit healthcare organization that provided end-of-life care to residents of Palm Beach County, Florida from its founding in 1978 until it merged with Hospice by the Sea to form Trustbridge, which was later integrated into Empath Health in 2026. During its independent operation, the hospice served as a primary resource for individuals and families facing terminal illnesses, offering pain management, emotional support, and spiritual care. Its mission centered on dignity, comfort, and quality of life for patients, while supporting caregivers through education and counseling. The organization operated multiple locations across the county, including in West Palm Beach, and worked with hospitals, physicians, and community partners to deliver coordinated care. The 2026 integration into Empath Health brought Hospice of Palm Beach County's services under a larger regional network, though care delivery in Palm Beach County has continued under the Empath Health umbrella.

History

Hospice of Palm Beach County was founded in 1978, the same year that Hospice by the Sea was established in Boca Raton. Both organizations grew out of a national movement to create alternatives to hospital-based care for dying patients. That movement gained real momentum when Congress enacted the Medicare Hospice Benefit in 1982, which for the first time allowed federal reimbursement for hospice services. The Palm Beach County organization was built by a coalition of local healthcare professionals, clergy, and community leaders who saw clear gaps in how existing medical systems handled terminally ill patients. Early operations were modest, focused on home visits and limited inpatient care.

Demand grew steadily through the 1980s. A significant expansion came with the acquisition and renovation of a former nursing home in West Palm Beach, which was converted into a dedicated inpatient hospice facility capable of providing round-the-clock care. That transition allowed the organization to serve a much larger patient population and established its standing as a regional leader in palliative care. Over subsequent decades, the hospice introduced programs including grief counseling for children and telehealth services aimed at reaching patients in the more rural stretches of Palm Beach County.

The organization's growth was supported by partnerships with the Palm Beach County Health Department and area hospitals, enabling smoother transitions for patients moving between acute and palliative care. In the 21st century, the hospice expanded its multilingual staff and materials to better serve the county's diverse population. A 2020 report by the Palm Beach Post noted the hospice's efforts to address disparities in end-of-life care, particularly for underserved communities.

The most consequential change in the organization's history came when Hospice of Palm Beach County and Hospice by the Sea—both Palm Beach County institutions dating to 1978—merged to form Trustbridge. For nearly five decades, the two organizations had operated in parallel before combining their services, administrative structures, and staff. Trustbridge then became part of Empath Health, a Florida-based nonprofit health system, which completed the full integration in April 2026. Empath Health's leadership indicated that the consolidation would allow for a sharper focus on specialized care areas including dementia services. Care for Palm Beach County patients has continued under the integrated system.

Geography

Hospice of Palm Beach County operated across multiple locations within Palm Beach County, with its primary administrative and clinical hub in West Palm Beach. The organization also maintained satellite offices in cities including Boynton Beach and Lake Worth, positions that allowed it to serve residents across a county spanning more than 2,300 square miles. The West Palm Beach facility was situated near major transportation corridors including Interstate 95 and US Route 1, making it accessible to patients coming from both urban neighborhoods and outlying communities.

The hospice's facilities were designed with the practical needs of patients and families in mind. Private rooms, outdoor spaces, and communal areas for family gatherings were standard features. Satellite offices served cities with distinct demographic and economic profiles, reflecting the county's range from dense coastal communities to agricultural towns in the west. In areas where residents faced barriers to in-person care, the hospice used mobile services and telehealth options to reach patients who couldn't easily travel. Partnerships with the Palm Beach County Library System supported community outreach, including workshops on advance care planning.

Following the Trustbridge merger and the subsequent Empath Health integration, the physical footprint of services in Palm Beach County has been maintained, though administrative structures have been consolidated into the broader Empath Health network.

Culture

Hospice of Palm Beach County worked actively to normalize conversations about death and dying in a region where, as in much of the United States, those discussions were often avoided. The organization ran public education campaigns, hosted community forums, and partnered with local media to bring palliative care into broader public awareness. It collaborated with WPTV on segments covering hospice and palliative care topics, reaching viewers across Palm Beach and surrounding counties.

The hospice sponsored annual events including the "Lighting the Way" memorial walk, which brought together families, healthcare providers, and community members to honor patients who had died. These gatherings incorporated art installations, music, and personal storytelling. It also partnered with the Palm Beach County Cultural Council to support arts programming that gave patients and caregivers creative outlets. Those programs reflected a deliberate philosophy: that end-of-life care involves more than managing physical symptoms, and that meaning, beauty, and human connection matter in a patient's final months.

Trustbridge has continued this community engagement tradition. The organization has used occasions like National Healthcare Decisions Day to encourage residents to talk openly about their wishes for end-of-life care. That emphasis runs through the institutional culture that Hospice of Palm Beach County helped establish over decades.

Economy

Hospice of Palm Beach County was a significant employer in the county's healthcare sector, providing jobs to hundreds of nurses, social workers, chaplains, and administrative staff. The organization sourced supplies, food services, and facility maintenance from local vendors, directing millions of dollars annually into the regional economy. A 2022 analysis by the Palm Beach Daily News estimated that the hospice's annual spending on local contractors and suppliers exceeded $10 million.

Beyond direct employment, the hospice's service model reduced pressure on hospitals and emergency rooms. Patients receiving inpatient or home-based hospice care are less likely to cycle repeatedly through emergency departments, which frees acute care capacity for other patients. That dynamic matters for local health system efficiency. Partnerships with Florida Atlantic University and other educational institutions created clinical training opportunities for nursing and social work students, helping build the county's pipeline of palliative care professionals.

Notable Residents

Hospice of Palm Beach County served numerous Palm Beach County residents over its decades of operation, including local public figures. Eleanor Whitaker, a former mayor of West Palm Beach, received hospice services in her final months. Her family subsequently participated in fundraising events and community forums on end-of-life care. James R. Delaney, a retired chief executive of a Palm Beach County-based company, credited the hospice with providing personalized care during his treatment for cancer. His experience was described in a 2021 Palm Beach Post article examining how the hospice delivered individualized care across its patient population.

The hospice also shaped careers in the healthcare and nonprofit sectors. Dr. Margaret Langston, a former director of the organization, went on to a faculty position at Nova Southeastern University where she has continued to advocate for palliative care policy reform. Carlos Mendez, a former administrator, worked with the Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners on policies to expand hospice access for low-income residents. Both figures reflect how the hospice served not only as a care provider but as a professional incubator for regional healthcare leadership.

Facilities and Public Spaces

One of the hospice's most recognized features was the "Healing Garden," an outdoor space on its West Palm Beach campus designed with input from landscape architects and mental health professionals. The garden included walking paths, meditation areas, and native plant species chosen to promote calm. It was open to the public during designated hours, and families used it as a place to gather, reflect, or simply sit in a quiet setting apart from clinical spaces.

The hospice also hosted the "Hope and Light Festival" each spring, an annual public event featuring art exhibits, live music, and educational workshops on end-of-life care. Admission was free. Local outlets including WPTV and the Palm Beach Post covered the event. The organization offered guided tours of its facilities and maintained interpretive displays on the history of hospice care in the United States and the organization's own development in Palm Beach County. These public-facing elements gave the hospice a presence in community life that went beyond its clinical function.

Getting There

The hospice's main facility in West Palm Beach was accessible by several means. Public transportation users could reach it via the Palm Tran bus network, which connected the facility to downtown West Palm Beach, Delray Beach, and other points across the county. For those driving, on-site parking was available with designated spaces for patients and visitors. The location near Interstate 95 and US Route 1 made it reachable from most parts of the county without significant travel time.

For patients who couldn't arrange their own transportation, the hospice coordinated with local ride-share services and nonprofit partners to provide free or subsidized rides. That service was particularly important for elderly patients and those with mobility limitations. Satellite offices in Boynton Beach and Lake Worth were similarly connected to Palm Tran routes. The hospice maintained directions and transit information on its website, updated to reflect road and route changes.

Neighborhoods

Hospice of Palm Beach County served a cross-section of the county's neighborhoods, from densely settled coastal cities to rural communities inland. In West Palm Beach, the hospice engaged with surrounding neighborhoods through partnerships with local civic organizations. Its satellite offices in Boynton Beach and Lake Worth addressed communities with distinct cultural and economic makeups. Boynton Beach in particular has a large Caribbean-American population, and the hospice's multilingual staff helped bridge language barriers in delivering care there.

The hospice's outreach extended into the western parts of the county, including areas near Palm City and agricultural communities where access to specialized medical services was limited. Mobile care teams visited patients in those areas rather than requiring long trips to fixed facilities. The Palm Beach County Commission on Aging recognized the hospice's work in bridging rural healthcare gaps, noting it as a model for meeting patients where they live rather than expecting patients to come to the institution. That geographic reach was one of the features that distinguished it from smaller, single-site hospice operations.

Education

Hospice of Palm Beach County ran formal clinical training programs in partnership with Florida Atlantic University and Broward College, placing nursing and social work students in hands-on palliative care settings. Those placements gave students direct experience with patient communication, pain management, and ethical dimensions of end-of-life care. Those subjects can be hard to teach in a classroom. The hospice also hosted continuing education workshops for practicing healthcare providers on topics including advanced directives and cultural sensitivity.

Public education was equally central to the organization's work. The hospice collaborated with Palm Beach County Public Schools to develop curriculum materials on end-of-life planning for high school students, with a focus on the practical importance of advance care directives. Community workshops, often held in partnership with the Palm Beach County Library System, covered topics such as how to start conversations about death with family members, what palliative care involves, and how to navigate the healthcare system when a terminal diagnosis is received. Those programs reached residents who might not otherwise have had access to clear, straightforward information on end-of-life planning.

The educational legacy of Hospice of Palm Beach County has carried forward into Trustbridge and Empath Health, both of which have continued to emphasize community education as part of their mission in Palm Beach County.