Abstract
Broward County's jail hospice program initiated service in 1995. Infirmary services for both men and women in the jail system are housed in one of Broward County's four jail sites. The County, in partnership with the local Medicare certified hospice, Hospice by the Sea, provides care to inmates both in the detention center and on release to the community. Compassionate release, "community control," and expedited case disposition are sometimes utilized. Jail stays are typically shorter than prison sentences. Consequently, expedient identification and enrollment of hospice-appropriate detainees differentiates hospice in a jail setting from prison hospice. Initial attitudinal resistance to hospice services for detainees has for the most part been overcome. Ongoing challenges largely consist of institutional impediments regarding supplies, special dietary needs of hospice patients, visitation procedures, and potential patient isolation.
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