Inpatient Care at the Wockner Hospice Care Center
While most hospice care is done in a home setting (including private residences, adult family homes, assisted and memory care communities and more), sometimes a higher level of care is necessary due to complex care needs.
For those receiving hospice services through EvergreenHealth Hospice Care, that higher level of care often occurs at our inpatient Wockner Hospice Care Center adjacent to the EvergreenHealth Medical Center campus in Kirkland. The Wockner Hospice Care Center provides hospital-level care by hospice-certified and credentialed medical providers (including 24-hour nursing care) in a home-like, tranquil setting.
The Wockner Hospice Care Center offers a unique benefit to EvergreenHealth Hospice Care patients who may need it. While Medicare requires that all hospice organizations have the capability to serve their patients in a hospital-level setting if needed, EvergreenHealth Hospice Care is the only local hospice organization offering hospital-level acute care in a free-standing, community-supported, home-like hospice care center – the only one in western Washington.
The Wockner Hospice Care Center is made available to qualifying EvergreenHealth hospice patients through community support; both by community levy funds as a part of our status as a public hospital district and through the generosity of donors who have contributed to the Wockner Hospice Care Center since its inception. Community volunteers offer meaningful and consistent support to family and friends of patients.
While we strive to serve individuals in their homes, there are times when 24/7, acute care is needed. EvergreenHealth's Wockner Hospice Care Center offers that safety net when it is needed most.
The center provides eligible individuals short-term acute care, covered under the hospice benefit, with the goal of discharging patients home once symptoms have been stabilized.
Wockner Hospice Care Center Amenities
The beautiful Cape Cod-style facility was designed to be as home-like as possible, consistent with safety, security and excellent medical care.
Families and friends can visit at any time, and children are very welcome. Family pets can even visit after proof of current vaccinations.
The center's 15 private patient rooms each include:
Sleeping spaces for visitors
Private bath with shower
Television
Wardrobe closet
Outdoor patio opening onto park-like gardens
Learn about the journey Kayla Nolan took with her mom at the Wockner Hospice Care Center
Front Entrance
Just inside the entrance is a cozy library with couches, a fireplace an a window seat.
Garden and Paths
Our hospice suites look out onto beautiful gardens.
Outdoor Access
Each of our hospice suites has access to our lovely gardens.
Hospice Gardens
Patients and visitors enjoy the tranquility of our lush gardens, with walking paths and seating.
Hospice Rose Garden
The many varieties of roses provide bursts of color.
Hospice Alpine Garden
Rockery, waterfalls, trees and bushes provide a lovely place for meditation.
Hospice Alpine Garden
Water features include rockery, waterfalls and ponds.
Alpine Garden Memorials
Monuments are located throughout the Alpine Garden.
Each wing features a full kitchen, where families and guests can prepare meals and snacks.
The main family room has a children's corner that gives little ones a place to play.
The gardens surrounding the center include a lush courtyard with a waterfall, a children's play area and walking paths through the rose and alpine gardens.
Full-time staff, along with highly trained volunteers, are onsite to tend to patients and offer support to visiting family and friends.
Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the hospice center.
History of the Wockner Hospice Care Center
The Wockner Hospice Care Center is a testament to the transformative power of philanthropy. In the late 1980s, when Eugene (Gene) Wockner became seriously ill, his wife, Irene, longed for a more comforting environment for his final days.
After Gene's passing, Irene's generous donation led to the creation of EvergreenHealth Hospice Care Center, inspiring the community to raise funds for a dedicated hospice facility. Renamed in Irene's honor in 2003, the center remains the only free-standing inpatient hospice care center in King and Snohomish counties.
Today, the Wockner Hospice Care Center provides compassionate end-of-life care and support to families, thanks to ongoing community generosity and support from the public hospital district. Irene's legacy of open-hearted hospitality continues at the center, welcoming all who need the comforting embrace of EvergreenHealth Hospice Care and exemplifying how philanthropy can profoundly impact lives.
