By Kelsey Givens

A new hospice group has opened its doors to the Pahrump area and has begun helping patients and their families throughout the community.

Infinity Hospice Care, located at 3250 State Route 160 Suite 10 in the Meadows Bank Plaza, is the fourth location for this hospice group, which opened in 2005 in Phoenix, Ariz.

Kim Anderson of Infinity Hospice Care said the company’s founders, Mary Bertram and her two sons Darren Bertram and Brian Bertram, founded the company with the philosophy of creating a family environment for their employees as well as their patients and families in order to give those in their care the best service and quality of life they can.

Infinity Hospice Care, believes in “a family of caring” and in “raising the standard of hospice care in Nevada. So we really strive not only to have the leaders in the field, but people that really are extremely passionate in the philosophy of hospice.” she said.

The hospice group expanded from its Maricopa County location in Arizona into Nevada in 2007 with the opening of its Las Vegas office. Several years later in 2011, Infinity Hospice Care opened a third office in Reno and subsequently opened a fourth office in Pahrump this year.

The company’s newest location accepted its first patient just before Thanksgiving. Anderson said in keeping with the company’s goal of making their staff, patients and their families feel at home, they plan to hire local nurses and team members and keep patients in Pahrump for their care.

“Our goal is to keep patients in Nye County and therefore our plan is not to bring them to Las Vegas for their care, keeping them close to their family, friends and overall support is important because we know that people just feel better when they’re surrounded by their loved ones,” she said. “Our core staff lives in Pahrump and they are vested in the community. We are proud to be adding jobs to the Pahrump economy and meeting the needs of the patients and their families by providing the highest level of quality hospice care.”

Going along with that goal, two of the company’s full-time certified team members have been involved in hospice services in the community for years.

Linda Ferreira, a registered nurse and nationally certified hospice and palliative care provider, and Jennifer Hewitt, a certified nursing assistant, said they are excited to be able to help this company provide much needed services to the under-served county.

“It’s unbelievable how many people 55 and over have no supportive services,” Hewitt said. “They’re not aware of what’s available.”

Infinity Hospice Care provides a team approach to taking care of their patients, utilizing a variety of different local entities to make the person as comfortable as they possible can.

“Anyone with a life-limiting illness we are able to provide their care within their home, wherever they call home, that is a team approach. So their team could include a physician, nurse practitioner, registered nurse, certified nursing assistant, volunteer, dietitian, social worker, and spiritual counselor.

“Infinity Hospice Care will be there to support patients and their families and provide high quality care, keeping the patients comfortable, as pain and symptom free as possible and utilizing as many additional resources as they need. It’s about the quality of life, and whether that means visits on a daily basis, or on an as-needed basis, we’re looking to better the quality of life for someone that is dealing with a life-limiting illness,” Anderson said.

The Pahrump office is also looking into furthering the reach of their care by doing more to support those suffering from Alzheimer’s disease by way of their “Forget Me Not” program. Infinity Hospice Care is a proud sponsor of the We Honor Veterans program and committed to supporting the local veterans.

As their business continues to grow and they take on more patients in the community, the company will hire more local team members to serve the area.

Ferreira added that they are also always looking for volunteers to help with anything from tasks around the office to going out and visiting with their homebound patients for those who would like to help.

For more information about Infinity Hospice Care and their services, or how to volunteer, those interested can visit their website at www.infinityhospicecare.com, or call 775- 537-2002.