Meet Ephrem Abathun, Executive Director at Hospice Ethiopia. A handful of our board members met this amazing leader over the past 8 years and we have walked along side him and his team at Hospice Ethiopia. It was evident that more support would be needed and this was the passion and motivation behind launching Ethiopia Hospice Care (EHC) in the United States.
We have a strong partnership with Hospice Ethiopia and plan to build on this partnerhship to expand services in Ethiopia. To learn more about Hospice Ethiopia please visit www.hospiceethiopia.com.
Palliative and hospice care not only focus on the patient’s physical and emotional needs but also extend crucial support to their families, especially children. Serious illness can deeply affect children, who may struggle with fear, confusion, or grief. Providing age-appropriate information, emotional support, and a safe space to express feelings is essential. Family members often take on caregiving roles and face emotional and practical challenges. Palliative teams work holistically to support the entire family unit—offering counselling, respite, and guidance—helping them cope, make informed decisions, and maintain stability during a profoundly difficult time. Compassionate family support is central to quality care.
Fetla is 50 years old and is married, living with her husband and their 2 children. As an Orthodox Christian, she feels supported by her religious faith.
She was recently referred to the Black Lion Hospital with a likely cancerous breast lump and the hospital made a diagnosis of breast cancer with a cerebral metastasis (the cancer had spread to her brain). The hospital had offered to do a fine needle biopsy (presumably of the breast lump) but no hospital records or letters were available to see. Fetla had received 5 doses of radiotherapy to her head.
Nurse Kalkidan had established that Fetla had been made aware she had cancer, but not that the disease had spread to her head. She spent time talking with her providing psychological support and encouragement.
Meet Nanni, one of the HIV positive patients at Hospice Ethiopia. Nanni came to hospice very dehydrated with sever vomiting and diarrhea. Her family had abandoned her and she was in need of both physical and emotional support. She lives in simple means, as with many people in Ethiopia. She had a very hard bed and could not support herself financially. In addition to helping her manage the HIV virus by giving her the needed antiviral treatments we gave her a mattress and items to make her bedding comfortable and we are paying her rent so she can rest and not worry about the roof over her head.
The staff has work to lend support to her spiritual needs as well as physical. In just an short time, Nanni sat up and visited with us with the most beautiful smile ever.
November marks National hospice and Palliative Care Month, a time to honor the compassionate care that brings comfort, dignity, and support to patients and families
Ethiopia Hospice Care (EHC) is a newly established nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization in the United States, dedicated to advancing hospice and palliative care in Ethiopia. Guided
This article was written in 2015 when he was just the lead of the clinical department at Hospice Ethiopia. Dr. Ephrem Abathun, is now the
When EHC Executive Director, Stephanie Council, retired in 2017 after a 32-year career as a technology manager, her expectations were to begin her life of
Filagot Tadele, a palliative care nurse, spends her days crisscrossing Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, caring for cancer and HIV patients. Many of them are slowly
Meaza (not her real name), a 57-year old woman residing in Addis Ababa’s Yeka sub-city, faced a challenging journey battling colon cancer. Living in a
Meet Nanni, one of the HIV positive patients at Hospice Ethiopia. Nanni came to hospice very dehydrated with sever vomiting and diarrhea. Her family had
Meet Hospice Ethiopia Sr. Nurse, Kalkidan, who lead the palliative care department at Hospice Ethiopia. She brings both professional and compassionate skill to each patient
