LEWISTON – Androscoggin Home Care and Hospice recently graduated 16 hospice volunteers from a training program co-sponsored with Lewiston Adult Education.

The agency hospice volunteer course is designed to provide prospective volunteers with the necessary skills to work with the agency’s terminally ill patients and their families.

Through guest speakers and special activities, the comprehensive 27-hour training curriculum explores a range of topics, including the hospice philosophy, the needs of the terminally ill and their families, communication and listening skills, the impact of illness on the family, spirituality and grief and bereavement.

“We are very pleased to have had the opportunity to work with Lewiston Adult Education in providing our classes,” said Nancy Greene, agency volunteer coordinator.

“Our new hospice volunteers are an incredible group of people,” she said. “In the coming months, they will have the opportunity to be an integral part of the hospice experience and truly make a difference in our community.

“Whether through direct involvement with families, community outreach or office support, our volunteers are valuable members of the hospice team and play a critical role in the end-of-life care we provide to all of our patients and their families.”

Androscoggin Home Care and Hospice will offer a nine-week hospice volunteer training through Lewiston Adult Education from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. Thursdays, beginning Jan. 27. For additional information, contact Greene at 777-7740 or 1-800-482-7412.

Androscoggin Home Care and Hospice is a nonprofit, Medicare-certified agency that provides skilled home care, supportive care and hospice care for residents of Androscoggin, Franklin, Oxford and northern Cumberland counties.

The agency provides a full spectrum of services. More information can be found at the Web site, ahch.org.