A New Brand and Website, the Same Unique Approach to Caregiving
We are excited to launch our new website, along with our new public-facing name, Zen Caregiving Project. We believe this name best holds all of our activities and offerings and is dynamic and inclusive of all caregivers and care recipients. We are optimistic that this shift will help us serve more people and expand our impact long-term.
This change has prompted questions from many people who have followed and supported our work as Zen Hospice Project, and this blog aims to answer some of those questions and reassure our supporters that our commitment to caregivers remains stronger than ever.
Why the changes?
From our organization’s founding until September 2019, we were known as Zen Hospice Project. This name represented our work and focus for over 30 years. However, in 2018, we closed our Guest House care facility, and our focus has evolved from working solely with those approaching end-of-life to include caregivers who support those living with chronic and terminal illnesses.
We encourage caregivers to learn emotional skills early in their caregiving journey to support well-being and provide higher quality care. We have learned that if family caregivers wait until their loved one is hospice eligible before they seek the support our courses provide, they are often already dealing with acute distress or burnout. We want to positively impact the well-being of all caregivers working in any healthcare environment. In light of our expanded focus, we believe that “hospice” in our name no longer conveys the scope of services we offer.
While our public-facing name will be Zen Caregiving Project, our legal name will remain Zen Hospice Project. We recognize the powerful goodwill and brand recognition this name has garnered over the years and plan to continue to leverage it to maximize positive social impact through all our activities. If you’re interested in reading more information on the evolution of our name see our website FAQs.
What programs does Zen Caregiving Project offer?
We offer programs in three main areas:
- Our Mindful Caregiving Education teaches mindfulness-based approaches to caregivers to build emotional resilience. Our curriculum supports skillful coping with the stress and loss that is often part of the experience of assisting persons living with chronic and terminal illnesses. We’ve expanded our offerings to include online courses so caregivers can now take this course from almost anywhere! Check here for upcoming courses.
- Our Volunteer Caregiving Program trains volunteers in practices that help them provide compassionate support to people in long-term palliative and hospice care settings. Our flagship volunteer program on Laguna Honda Hospital’s Palliative Care ward is thriving. Read more about the Volunteer Caregiving Program here.
- Through our Workshops on Loss, we host a variety of forums to talk about loss and death to promote a healthy relationship with death and loss and to support compassion for those going through the end of life experience. You can explore upcoming courses here, and our listings in the upcoming ReImagine festival.
With our new website, we have made our programs easier to find and more tailored to the needs of those seeking our support.
What next?
We’d appreciate if you could share our new site and courses with anyone you think may find them useful. We’d also love to hear from you about collaborating as we believe that better caregiving happens through networks of inspired people and organizations working together. Our Partners page shows examples of how we have and are partnering with a range of different organizations to support caregivers, and those they serve.