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About Gaia Home

The Mission and Vision

 

Rooted in kindness, the mission of Gaia Home is to bring comfort, compassion, and dignity to all persons and their loved ones, as we nurture the human spirit through the end-of-life journey.

 

A community of private home-like units and shared gathering spaces, Gaia Home will be one of the first dedicated places of its kind in the state with qualified medical care specializing in the end-of-life journey. It will provide families and their loved ones with adequate space to live in, gather, connect, reminisce, and rest in privacy and peace, giving them the chance to truly treasure their precious time together during the final season of life.

Two women smiling at eachother in nature

Filling The Gap in Care

 

Today, there is no place in North Dakota that specializes in end-of-life care in a homier setting, which is an option in many other states, but currently does not exist here.

 

For families and their loved ones facing the final season of life, in-home hospice care is the most desirable option. However, whether due to medical or other concerns, in-home hospice is just not feasible for many, and the current option is to spend the final journey in a non-home, unfamiliar setting. Gaia Home will provide a comfortable, homier solution for:

 

  • People requiring hospice care who have limiting factors which make it difficult or impossible to receive services at their home.
  • Families with loved ones who wish to remain in a comfortable home setting during the end-of-life journey but are unable to provide the home-based 24-hour caregiving needed.
  • People needing compassionate end-of-life care who live outside of a hospice service area.
  • Family members currently acting as primary caregivers to their loved ones who need support in administering care or managing grief.
  • Caregivers who need relief and respite from providing care.
  • Hospice patients whose home is no longer a viable option for their required care but do not wish to spend their final season in a non-home setting.
  • Terminally ill individuals who are discharged from the hospital but have no housing to live out their final journey.
  • Individuals who do not want to have the final passage in their personal home as it can be very traumatic for family members who will live there after their loved one is gone.
 
 
Us Map highlighting the state of North Dakota

How is Gaia Home Different?

 

Gaia Home’s private units and community spaces will welcome Gaia Home Guests and the people they want to have with them during the final season of life. Healthcare professionals will be at Gaia Home 24 hours a day, seven days a week to relieve families of difficult caregiving tasks. With support from professional caregivers in a home away from home, Gaia Home Guests and their families can focus on making lasting memories and truly treasure their precious time together.

Woman pushing man in wheelchair out in nature

Why Gaia Home Now?

 

 

Bismarck, the city in which Gaia Home will be located, is often referred to as the healthcare hub for central and western North Dakota. The need for Gaia Home is projected to increase in coming years because of the aging population and overall population growth expectations.

 

 

    • 17% of ND’s population is 65+ (the demographic that most utilizes hospice).1.
    • 6 counties in the state have 28.1%+ of its population as 65+, and 4 of these counties are within 120 miles of Bismarck.2.
    • From 2020 to 2035, ND’s 65+ population and ND’s Western 4 regions’ overall population are expected to grow to 27.9% and 12.3%, respectively.3.
    • By 2030, ND’s 65+ population is estimated to be at 157,341 or 18.1% of the overall expected population.3.
    • In ND’s Western 4 regions there are 28 counties and 3 of those counties currently have no hospice services and 10 have only 1 provider to choose from.4.
    • On a daily basis, 10-30% of people on hospice services may need a place like Gaia Home. The average daily census of people on hospice services in the Bismarck-Mandan and surrounding communities is roughly 92 people and in central/western ND it is approximately 139, which means anywhere from 9 to 28 or 14 to 42 individuals and their families (respectively) each day could possibly benefit from Gaia Home.5.

1. U.S. Census – Quick Facts ND
2. Rural Health Information Hub
3. 2024 ND State Data Center Population Projections: Of the State, Regions, & Counties
4. NDHHS hospice locator
5. Conversations with local hospice providers and out-of-state providers who operate facilities similar to Gaia Home along with CMS utilization data.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
older woman hugging teenage looking boy