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For Immediate Release May 14, 2019 Contact Steve Coates 860.634.4477 Steve.coates@hhchealth.org Carol Mahier to Retire From Center for Hospice Care NORWICH — After more than three decades of leadership, Carol Mahier has announced that she will retire on May 31 from Center for Hospice Care. Over the past 32 years, Mahier has led the regional hospice from a small community organization to one that has served more than 12,500 patients and families. Mahier nurtured the hospice program, and led its evolution from a coalition of 12 home care agencies with a single employee to become one of only three community based non-profit hospice programs in Connecticut. Nursing is her passion and her joy — a privilege she is abundantly grateful to have practiced during her career, she said. Mahier has always been an advocate for those who need care and has spent countless hours lobbying state lawmakers to make hospice care more accessible. Her efforts have been recognized by many, including the Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut, which honored her as the as Executive Director of the Year, and the Connecticut Association for Healthcare at Home, which presented her with the Judith Hriceniak Award for Excellence in Nursing Leadership. Mahier’s career began in Baltimore, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Maryland, followed by an Adult Nurse Practitioner Certificate and a MSN degree in Public Health from the University of Virginia. Her practice areas have included working in both the acute and home care settings before she ultimately found her niche in end of life care. Mahier has been a leader for the Connecticut Council for Hospice & Palliative Care and she played a critical role in merging that organization into the Connecticut Association for Healthcare at Home, where she remains an active member. “Carol has contributed 32 years of experience to Center for Hospice Care and her commitment and achievements will never be forgotten,” said Rita Parisi, Senior Vice President of the Hartford HealthCare Community Network — the organization with which the center affiliated in April. “Her work ethic and devotion to our hospice patients have been exemplary. She has been a mentor to so many and her influence has made an indelible impact on generations of professionals throughout hospice care. I want to thank Carol for all she’s done for the patients and families of the Center for Hospice Care and the entire community of southeastern Connecticut.” On April 1, 2019 Center for Hospice Care gave its approval for the Center to become part of Hartford HealthCare at Home. “In this ever-changing healthcare landscape, healthcare organizations are more likely to thrive when they create formal partnerships to work together,” said Mahier. # # # About Center for Hospice Care For over 32 years, Center for Hospice Care has been providing outstanding hospice and palliative care in Eastern Connecticut. As the region’s only community-based non-profit provider, Center for Hospice Care has served more than 12,500 patients. It has also provided bereavement counseling services free of charge to thousands of family members and loved ones, even to those whose loved one was not on our program. Center for Hospice Care is committed to providing a complete circle of care that optimizes quality of life for its patients and families. About Hartford HealthCare at Home Hartford HealthCare at Home is a not-for-profit community-based home health and hospice organization serving more than 100 communities in Connecticut. Founded in 1901, Hartford HealthCare at Home is part of an integrated health care system known as Hartford HealthCare. Hartford HealthCare at Home fulfills its mission by enabling individuals to achieve maximum independence, to participate in their own plan of care, and to live with dignity while receiving quality care in their own homes.