In 2007, CHCF announced its intention to “promote appropriate care toward the end of life by eliciting and honoring patients’ wishes.” To make measurable advances over the course of a decade, the foundation would develop an expanding roster of grants to (1) promote the awareness and adoption of POLST (Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment) and (2) support sustainable palliative care programs, starting with California safety-net hospitals.

Over the course of a decade, CHCF’s grantmaking portfolio developed organically, responding to persistent needs and sudden opportunities as it simultaneously worked multiple levers among policymakers, consumers, clinicians, and insurers. The foundation assembled a mosaic of services and interventions that proved mutually reinforcing, branching out over time while consistently bolstering the main goals and prime strategies.

The full report, Finding Focus: Reflections on a Decade of Work in End-of-Life Care, is available under Document Downloads.