BERLIN — Coastal Hospice has received approval from the Maryland Health Care Commission to proceed with construction of the Macky & Pam Stansell House of Coastal Hospice at the Ocean in Ocean Pines and has broken ground on the project.
Whiting-Turner is the contractor for the project and will begin construction immediately. The new residence is expected to begin accepting patients towards the end of 2018.
The Stansell House will give hospice patients the dignity of hospice care with the comforts of home. It is designed for those in hospice who have no one to care for them in their own homes, and will be a safe and secure place where patients and their families receive the medical, emotional, and spiritual support they need.
Originally designed as a clubhouse at The Point neighborhood in Ocean Pines on an 11-acre waterfront property on the Isle of Wight Bay, the building sat unfinished and vacant for more than 10 years until Coastal Hospice purchased it at the end of 2016 with the intent of transforming it into a state-of-the-art hospice residence. While the exterior of the building will retain its general appearance, the north side of the building will be demolished and reconstructed to meet the unique needs of hospice patients. The interior will be furnished to be as home-like as possible, with rocking chairs on the porch, original artwork on the walls, and private spaces for families to gather.
The new hospice residence and outreach center will include 12 private patient rooms, most with water views, plus family rooms, kitchens, open air decks, a labyrinth, and a meditation garden. Also housed at the new facility will be a community center offering bereavement support and other programs.
“Approval by the Maryland Health Care Commission allows us to break ground and turn an abandoned building into a warm and safe hospice home,” said Coastal Hospice President Alane Capen. “We are eagerly looking forward to the day when this important service becomes available to hospice-eligible patients with unmet care and safety needs.”
“There is a real need for a hospice residence, particularly here on the Lower Shore,” said donor and co-chair of the hospice residence committee, Macky Stansell.
The building will be named after Macky and Pam Stansell to honor their donations to the project.