Quincy for Hospice: AfterWords

Executive Summary

Hospice providers are federally required to provide bereavement services for at least 12–13 months following a patient’s death. For families, this period is one of the most vulnerable—yet current bereavement support workflows are inconsistent, resource-intensive, and difficult to measure. QliqSOFT transforms this requirement into a compassionate, structured, and repeatable process with automated outreach, scored forms, and IDT-ready documentation.

The right outreach after loss transforms grief support—from a compliance task into a lifeline families can trust.

Understanding the Problem

Bereavement outreach today is often manual and fragmented. Staff maintain spreadsheets, make ad-hoc phone calls, and struggle to document every interaction for compliance. Families experience uneven support: some receive multiple contacts, while others—particularly after weekend deaths—go days without follow-up. Operationally, this approach consumes hours of staff time, introduces compliance risks, and fails to consistently identify high-risk bereaved individuals. Because there is no direct reimbursement for bereavement care, inefficiencies directly impact margins and stretch limited staff resources.

AfterWords Workflow: Operationalize Compassionate, Risk-Aware Support for 13 Months Post-Loss

Introduce & Educate: Before and immediately after death, families receive compassionate introductions, educational resources on grief, and information about what to expect from bereavement services.

Set Expectations: Families are guided on how and when they will be contacted over the next 13 months, with clarity about available resources and 24/7 contact options.

Collect Key Information: Using QuickForms, hospices capture caregiver details, preferred communication channels, language, and early grief risk indicators.

Execute Outreach: Automated, scheduled SMS and emails deliver supportive messages, check-ins, scored assessments, and group invitations. AI triage routes responses based on severity.

Begin Bereavement Plan of Care: Results flow into a documented plan of care that includes identified needs, interventions, goals, and outcomes—reviewed regularly in Interdisciplinary Team meetings.

Regulatory & Compliance Considerations

• HIPAA: PHI behind secure links; all submissions encrypted and time‑stamped.
• TCPA: Opt‑out language templated; quiet‑hours honored.
• CMS: Support CMS hospice requirements for caregivers.
• SOC 2: QliqSOFT maintains SOC‑aligned controls.

QliqSOFT’s Bereavement Support Solution

QliqSOFT’s solution contains:

• Automated 13-month outreach cadence with pre-death and post-death touchpoints.
• Scored Quick Forms that categorize grief risk levels and trigger next steps.
• AI-assisted triage of SMS replies into branches with escalation rules.
• Secure invitations to grief support groups and memorial services.
• Weekly and monthly reporting digests for Interdisciplinary Teams.
• Audit-ready documentation of outreach, responses, and outcomes.
• Flexible EMR integration (APIs, HL7, FHIR, CSV, SFTP) for rosters and write-backs.

Integration with EMR & Systems

Bereavement rosters can be imported via APIs, HL7/MDM messages, or SFTP/CSV. Data fields typically include caregiver contact info, relationship, preferred language, patient MRN, and date of death. On the return path, outreach attempts, scored form results, and documented interventions are written back into the EMR. This ensures a single source of truth and eliminates duplicate data entry.

Best Practices

• Keep outreach messages brief, warm, and supportive.
• Always include 24/7 contact information.
• Respect caregiver language and accessibility preferences.
• Use one clear call to action in each outreach.
• Standardize message templates while allowing personalization.

Implementation Plan (30 Days)

This solution can be implemented quickly, as illustrated in the following example.

Prerequisites: Form the project team.  The hospice provides a list of caregivers and contact details, current programs and services provided, key documents, and baseline performance metrics.

Week 1: Map triggers, templates, compliance setup.

Week 2: Configure scored Quick Forms and campaigns.

Week 3: Pilot with one team/site; validate data flow and risk scoring.

Week 4: Train staff, expand system-wide, monitor KPIs.‍

Month 6: Determine current KPI performance and measure improvement.

KPIs to Track

• Engagement rate.
• Reduction in printing and mailing costs.
• Risk tiering distribution (low/moderate/high).
• Time to first live bereavement contact.
• Escalations resolved within SLA.
• Documentation completeness for plan of care.

Conclusion

Bereavement support is more than a regulatory requirement—it is the foundation of trust and healing for families. QliqSOFT transforms it into a structured, compassionate, and measurable process that identifies risk early, reduces staff burden, and ensures consistent quality. Ready to operationalize your bereavement program and see measurable results?