History
1978
Organizational meeting held at Glenn R. Frye Hospital by concerned citizens. This meeting was coordinated and hosted by hospital administrator Jean Settlemyre.
1979
Organization chartered by the State of North Carolina on September 7, 1979, as Hospice of Catawba Valley, Inc. The first hospice in the Unifour and one of the first three hospices established in North Carolina, all in 1979.
1980
Hired first nurse coordinator and staff person, Josephine (Jo) Bell. HCV admitted the first patient and served 18 patients during the year. Some of the first board members included Bob Gora-President, Tim Roach-Vice President, Tom Taffe-Secretary, Dale Cline-Treasurer, Doug Freeman-Chair for Personnel and Finance, Pat Annas-Chair for Volunteers, Margery Adams-Education, and Dr. Trado-Director of Professional Policy. Additional members included Carolyn Moretz, Nell Thomas, Anne Crotty, Van Grimes, Rev. Randy Ferebee, Flossie Saddler, Pat Jones, Dr. Lee Young, and Dr. Douglas Miller.
1988
Pete Prunkl joined Hospice of Catawba Valley as Executive Director in January.
1989
Certified by Medicare and Medicaid.
1990
Relocated from the First Presbyterian Church in Hickory to the Willard House at 263 Third Avenue NW in downtown Hickory. Served 118 patients with 11 staff members.
1995
Number of patients served increased from 18 in 1980 to 235 in 1995, and staff size increased to 25.
1997
David Clarke joined Hospice of Catawba Valley as Executive Director in March.
1998
Received an outstanding donation of land from Johnnie Buff on Robinson Road in Newton, NC.
1999
Completed a successful capital campaign to support facility construction at the Robinson Road location.
2000
Relocated to the new campus at 3975 Robinson Road in March, which included the Carpenter Hospice Center and Catawba Valley Hospice House. Served 419 patients, and staff size grew to 51.
2001
Initiated two new programs to support community needs: "Transitions" and "Grief in the Schools."
2002
Researched the benefits of expanding the focus of hospice to include palliative medicine.
2003
Initiated palliative care services and recruited and employed a full-time, certified palliative care and hospice physician.
2004
Hospice of Catawba Valley changed its name to Palliative CareCenter & Hospice of Catawba Valley to recognize organizations involvement in both hospice and palliative care services.
2005
Opened new 9-bed Patient Care Facility. Established the Center for Leadership & Learning to provide end-of-life care education to medical professionals and the community. Served 1,095 patients, and staff grew to 134 members.
2006
Became the first hospice in North Carolina to create specialized programs of care for heart failure and dialysis patients. Also one of the first hospices in the United States to employ a full-time Activities Director for the Hospice House. Served 1,424 patients, and staff grew to 160 members.
2007
Began Courage to Care capital campaign to expand PCHCV's inpatient care facilities. Frequent requests for our services prompted an expanded organizational focus to serve Catawba and five of its surrounding counties. Served 1,549 patients, and staff grew to 179 members.
2008
Completed Phase I of Courage to Care campaign. Construction began on expansion. Served 1,929 patients, and staff size increases to 183.
2009
Celebrated our 30 Years of Caring and the opening of the expanded Catawba Valley Hospice House (to 21 beds). Served our 10,000th patient. Changed the name of our palliative care program to “Life Transitions.” Served 2,149 patients, and staff size increased to more than 200.
2010
Broke ground for the Sherrills Ford Hospice House (6-bed unit). Grand opening of The Hospice Resale Shop located on Hwy 321 in Hickory. Established a specialized care program for COPD patients.
2011
Opened the Sherrills Ford Hospice House in Sherrills Ford, NC, in September. The 6-bed unit offers better access to residents in the Lake Norman area.
2012
Palliative CareCenter & Hospice of Catawba Valley differentiated its service lines with new DBA entities: Catawba Regional Hospice and Life Transitions (palliative medicine). Increased ability to serve the region thanks to a new 10-county service area.
2013
Carolina Caring’s Director of Community Relations Rev. Sandra Hood receives Hickory Spirit of King Award, given to individuals who exemplify the ideals of Martin Luther King, Jr. in making our community a better place to live for all people.
Named the grand prize winner of the 2013 Verizon Wireless Technology Innovation Awards in Greenville, SC. Recognized for using technology in an innovative way and selected from approximately 90 other entries to win a $10,000 prize.
2014
Premiered a smartphone app to facilitate patient referrals, increasing access to hospice care for both medical professionals and the general public. Achieved Level 4 Partner status in the We Honor Veterans program, a joint initiative of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) and the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
2015
Joined National Partnership for Hospice Innovation (NPHI). Asked by National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) to showcase our We Honor Veterans program to US Senator Richard Burr.
Opened a palliative medicine clinic at a local oncology practice.
Carolina Caring Directors of Community Outreach, Sandra Hood and Carolyn Thompson, became active members of the Racial Justice & Reconciliation Discussion Group.
Celebrated Hospice Thrift Store's 5th anniversary.
2016
Catawba Regional Hospice, now Carolina Caring, receives a grant from the Hickory Community Relations Council to support the enhancement of our community engagement and outreach initiatives, seeking to reduce the disparity in access to hospice care for eligible individuals in minority populations.
2017
Catawba Regional Hospice, now Carolina Caring, expanded its service area to include Cabarrus and Rowan Counties and opened a Palliative Medicine Clinic in Gastonia.
Local parish nurse and Carolina Caring Director of Community Relations Carolyn Thompson was recognized during the Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration as the 2017 recipient of the Spirit of King Award. The event was hosted by the Greater Hickory Ministerial Alliance and Hickory Area Ministers.
2018
David Cook began as Catawba Regional Hospice's President / Chief Executive Officer.
Catawba Regional Hospice has been named a 2018 Hospice Honors recipient by HEALTHCAREfirst.
PCHCV merges the two DBAs Catawba Regional Hospice and Life Transitions to create Carolina Caring.
Catawba Regional Hospice, now Carolina Caring, receives a grant from the Hickory Community Relations Council focused on breaking down barriers to advance care planning, which included barriers to completing advance medical directives in the African American community and lack of knowledge about hospice care in the Latino community.
2019
Carolina Caring ranked 18 in the nation by Modern Healthcare’s Best Places to Work program. We were also recognized from HEALTHCAREfirst as one of its Hospice Honors Award recipients and were awarded a $700,000 grant from The Duke Endowment to fund a new pediatric program, Cardinal Kids.
2020
Carolina Caring ranked 5th in the nation for Best Places to Work by Modern Healthcare and was also named a Hospice Honors recipient for the third time. We opened our newest Palliative Medicine Clinic in China Grove and launched the Virtual Intake Platform (VIP) to benefit patients by offering a simpler admissions process. We also expanded our Cardinal Kids Program into Gaston, Iredell, Mecklenburg, and Rowan Counties.
2021
Dana Killian is named CEO following Dave Cook's departure to Kentucky-based Hosparus.
The Carolina Caring House Calls program opened for those who have trouble accessing healthcare due to debilitating conditions.
Carolina Caring placed 4th among Modern Healthcare's Best Places to Work.
Carolina Caring Volunteer Sam Hunt was awarded with the Spirit of King Volunteer of the Year Award for dedicating much of his life to making a difference in the lives of others.
Two very important figures in our history passed away -Dave Clarke, past president and CEO of Carolina Caring, formerly Catawba Regional Hospice, as well as Johnnie Buff who donated the land where our Newton campus stands today. To remember them, we have planned to start construction on the Keystone Overlook, which honors these two men.
2022
Carolina Caring is recognized among Healthcare's Best Places to Work for the fourth year in a row.