ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Families in Haywood County will soon have another option for hospice care after AdventHealth received state approval to expand its services into the county.

AdventHealth announced it has been awarded a Certificate of Need approval to establish home-based hospice services in Haywood County, allowing the health system to offer end-of-life care for patients in their homes.

The expansion builds on AdventHealth’s existing presence in Western North Carolina, where the health system has provided cancer care in Haywood County and surrounding communities for more than a decade. It also recently expanded orthopedic services through AdventHealth | Southeastern Orthopedics and Spine at Haywood.

Officials said the new hospice program will extend the continuum of care for patients and families while providing another local option for end-of-life support.

“This approval is about more than adding another hospice care option. It gives us the opportunity to serve more families with compassionate hospice care that honors each person’s dignity and supports loved ones,” Bryan Wright, chief operating officer for AdventHealth Home Health and Hospice, said in a statement.

AdventHealth Hospice provides home-based, comfort-focused care through a multidisciplinary team that addresses patients’ physical, emotional and spiritual needs while also supporting family members and caregivers.

“Caring for families through every stage of life’s journey has always been at the heart of our mission,” Krystin Littleton, executive director of AdventHealth Home Health, said in a statement. “Expanding hospice services in Haywood County allows us to build on those relationships and ensure more families experience compassionate, coordinated care that supports the whole person and those who love them.”

AdventHealth said the approval continues its long-standing commitment to serving Western North Carolina and expands access to hospice care for Haywood County residents closer to home.