VITAS Healthcare

Pegisus

I can't say enough about this company and it's staff. They really helped my mother pass nicely and helped me handle it. Plus they were the only ones that responded immediately without jumping through hoops, when my Mom notified me that she only had days to live. I am probably going to miss some names because there have been a lot of medical staff in our lives over the last month. Shout out to Linda, Claire, Stephanie, Regina, Mahren (sp?), Emily and others I simply can't remember. I went from a royal mess with high pressure to calm and accepting, peaceful myself, when the time came. They kept my mom out of pain and comfortable. I only wish Mom had agreed to their services earlier.

a cancer patient

I was referred to Vitas through Kaiser as they were at capacity. I would not recommend Vitas to anyone. The initial visit she was in the house asking questions, etc and the next 2 hours on my porch doing paperwork. Why was I not told it would be a four hour consultation? Monday the nurse came and said because I was a new patient I would have a visit everyday for 7 days. Tuesday a nurse aid visited for 10 minutes doing nothing. Wednesday no one showed and did NOT call to let me know. Thursday the nurse aid came, gave me an abdominal binder and left being here a total of 5 minutes. Friday no visit. I am sick. If you say your coming then either come or call and let me know. Again I am sick so if your coming for 5 minutes don't come. I have to use what little energy I have to get up, open the door just so you can report you were here. They doubled my nlood pressure meds the first day here and not one nurse has checked my blood pressure since. My son and his family moved in with me to help me and the following Tuesday the nurse reported my house was "unclean and cluttered". Of course there is extra furniture due to a family of four moving in. How dare her. There is nothing on the floors for a safety concern and my house IS CLEAN. I am about to call Kaiser and request a different Hospice company. If Kaiser recommends them to you tell them no thank you, they suck big time.

Provider Response

Grrrrrr

My mother was in the care of VITAS for about 4 months and in that time we never had a set schedule. The nurses were never the same people. Our Hospice Aide that would assist with hygine washings was never nice, always in a hurry and forceful. When we had emergencies and needed asstance we would only get an operator who never helped us and then when a nurse finally called us back they said they couldn't come for at least 1-2 hours. My mother ended up with 3 Urinary Tract Infections because they never changed her catheter or washed her good. my mother also had several trips to the Emergency room at the hospital for care becuase VITAS wasn't there for us!

heathermoritz

So very disappointing. My family recently had to use Vitas Sacramento as a referral through Kaiser Permanente since their internal hospice program was at capacity. My cousin was caring for my aunt who was on hospice. After being released from the hospital, the RN came to the house the next day. ONE WEEK later, the office called to check-in and found out no nurse had shown up. Of course they sent a nurse right away. Later, her assigned RN apologized and took blame since she was out for personal reasons. This should have been managed better by the Vitas coordinating staff. Next, I discovered that my cousin was not acquainted with the end of life care or what to expect. I am an information driven person so I research everything. Also, having worked in healthcare for 11 years, I know a bit about end of life care and what to expect. My cousin didn't. This left her anxious, nervous, and uncertain about every change her mother went through in the last days of her life. Last, when the worker/chaplain lady showed up, she handed my cousin a packet of funeral homes for her to contact (right away), make her selection, and then report to the worker so the worker can contact Vitas. This is APPALING. Hospice care exists to support the patient AND the family who is caring for them. They didn't show up enough to care for my aunt and they didn't support my cousin with information of what to expect. Then they ended with making HER call a list of funeral homes. It is a disgusting way to treat someone and I hope that they never, ever do this to a family member in this situation. I am planning to write a lengthy letter to Sheila, the gernal manager for Sacramento Vitas as well as the director of Hospice or Kaiser Roseville. They need to know who they are referring their patients too.

lviglione

Vitas was recommended to us thru Kaiser and I could not have been happier. They have a great set of professionals that helped me care for my husband from the first interview. I highly recommend them. They cover all the bases. It certainly helps to have a group like this to help you thru such a difficult time. They have the experience and the expertise.

eldercaredoc

An amazing group of professionals that are truly caring dedicated and reliable during such an emotional time for patients and families.