FROM HOSPICE VOLUNTEER TO PATIENT -- NOW REACHING FOR SPACE

NAPA, Calif. and BRENTWOOD, Tenn., April 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A long-time hospice volunteer turned patient with Providence at Home with Compassus is changing the way people think about hospice care while actively pursuing her ambition to become the first hospice patient in space.

For 15 years, Pam Harter supported patients and families as a hospice volunteer with Providence in Napa Valley, offering presence and compassion during life's most meaningful moments. Today, at age 69, she is living with a rare genetic condition called pseudoxanthoma elxasticum (PXE) that affects her vascular system. After years of complex medical treatment and difficult decisions about additional procedures, Harter chose hospice care from the same provider she served for many years.

With the support of the care team at Providence at Home with Compassus, a joint venture between Providence and Compassus formed in 2024 to meet the growing demand for home health and hospice services, Harter stepped away from invasive treatments to focus on what matters most: quality of life.

"Hospice is giving me the comfort to keep living instead of just sitting around thinking about dying," Harter said.

Since choosing hospice she has traveled extensively with her husband to Italy, Croatia, Ecuador and the Galápagos. Now Harter is pursuing her most ambitious dream yet: to become the first hospice patient in space.

Harter is serious about this ambition. Her correspondence with the CEOs of companies that engage in space exploration and NASA has resulted in a private tour of the Virgin Galactic facility in New Mexico, and in September, she will go to Bordeaux, France, to undergo astronaut training.

"Every day, I get an email from somebody else, either hospice-related or space-related. There's no time for any sadness," Harter said. "Once your diagnosis is terminal, the sooner you get on with hospice, the better it is for everyone. Get the comfort, get the support. Instead of giving up, it's giving you life."

Harter's story has been featured in the Napa Valley Register, Hospice News and New York Post as she works to help change the conversation about hospice – showing that with the right support, hospice can create space for meaning, connection and extraordinary possibility.

Compassus is a national leader in providing high-quality, compassionate, person-centered care to individuals wherever they call home. For more information about Compassus and its services, visit compassus.com.

About Compassus

Compassus provides a continuum of integrated home-based services including home health, home infusion, palliative and hospice care. Around 10,000 teammates and more than 300 programs across 33 states provide high-quality care and manage patients' advanced illnesses in partnership with health systems and long-term care partners. The Compassus Care for who I am culture reflects its unique care delivery model, which focuses on each person as an individual as well as a patient, to improve their quality of life in a meaningful way. Through its specialized MSO (management services organization) approach, Compassus delivers integrated clinical, operational, and administrative support that enables its partners to scale home-based care efficiently and sustainably. Learn more at compassus.com or follow @Compassus on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram or Twitter.  

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SOURCE Compassus