RHSHC Hospice, Home Health, & Public Health

01/14/2026

Meet our new intern, Rylie! Rylie is a Luther College student and social work intern in our office for J-Term. She is a nursing major, counseling minor, and is on the soccer team at Luther. Rylie enjoys being outdoors and moving her body.

Rylie says, "My favorite part of the internship so far has been learning the intricacies of social work in the hospice setting and meeting new people."

Rylie chose to intern with us because she is interested in the unique challenges that come with providing hospice care in a rural setting.

She says, "HCCH has been a good fit due to the variety of services offered and the welcoming atmosphere provided by the staff," and she is excited to be here and learn all the things that make this service special!

01/08/2026

Howard County Community Hospice extends our sincere appreciation to the following businesses and organizations for their support of our annual Hospice Memorial Tree Event. Their participation makes this event possible, and in doing so, they directly support the mission and services of Howard County Community Hospice throughout our area.

-CUSB Bank for providing and helping decorate the CUSB tree and for collecting orders and donations

-Fisk Farm and Home for donating the tree that is displayed at the Cresco Fitness Center

-Cresco Fitness Center displaying the CFC tree and for collecting orders and donations

-The Hair Company for providing and helping decorate The Hair Company tree and for collecting orders and donations

-RHSHC for providing and helping decorate the RHSHC tree and for collecting orders and donations

Thank you to the following organizations for having order/donation forms available throughout the community:

-Cresco Bank & Trust Co.

-Regional Health Services of Howard County – Cresco Clinic, Lime Springs Clinic and Elma Clinic

-Cresco Family Pharmacy and Cresco Family Pharmacy South

SPECIAL THANKS to Hindt-Hudek Funeral Home and Schmelzer Funeral Home both from Cresco for taking part in this event.

Thank you to everyone who supported the Howard County Community Hospice Memorial Tree Event. It is truly appreciated!

-Janice Ollendick, HCCH Memorial Tree Coordinator

01/02/2026

COVID is in the community, and our hospice patients occasionally test positive. We, and the facilities we work with, do everything we can to minimize the spread of all germs. When we can’t, our crew goes out of our way to make being sick less hard. Thanks to nurse Alyssa for delivering a requested crossword book to a patient in isolation!

12/30/2025

It can be hard to think about goals when you're grieving. Our gentle suggestion to those who are missing someone important this holiday season is to consider setting one or two intentions from this list.

If you want to be added to our grief support email list, please contact griefsupport@rhshc.com or Brecka at 563-547-2989.

New Year’s Resolutions • I will try not to imagine the future and take one day at a time. • I will allow myself to cry, both alone and with loved ones. • I will not shut out family and fr

12/27/2025

Just two guys hanging out!

Or is it? Kinnick, CC, and Martin can provide a reduction in pain and anxiety, companionship, help patients open up, give them something to look forward to, and more. It all depends on the individual patient.

The bond between our trained pups and our hospice patients is incredible!

12/26/2025

Need a change in 2026? Join our team of hardworking, fun, compassionate professionals! We are in search of a full time administrative assistant and a PRN home health / hospice aide. Visit https://avera.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/avera-careers?locations=2cf51e5729141005fae78577b4980000 to apply today!

12/26/2025

Sharing one of our favorite holiday HOPE projects from years past as we think about all of our hospice families this evening. We hope you had moments of comfort and joy today and throughout the season.

12/25/2025

Merry Christmas from the hospice, home health, and public health team! We are lucky to have have such a great team, and to have found a few minutes to unwind, share holiday food, and exchange gifts.

12/24/2025

Merry Christmas to our facility partners and local clinics! Our crew had a great time delivering goodies to a number of locations this week!

Did you know Howard County Community Hospice partners with these long term care facilities so that every patient has the best of long term care and hospice under one roof?:

Evans Senior Living Community
Accura HealthCare of Cresco
Wellington Place Skilled Nursing & Assisted Living
Aase Haugen Senior Services
Barthell Eastern Star Home
Ossian Senior Hospice
Riceville Family Care and Therapy Center
Colonial Manor of Elma
New Hampton Nursing & Rehab- Kensington Place
Accura HealthCare of New Hampton

12/24/2025

We will be closing at noon today (Christmas Eve) and are closed tomorrow so that our team can celebrate the holidays with their families. Hospice patients and families: our hospice nurses remain on call 24/7 for our hospice patients - please do not hesitate to call our main line if you need anything this holiday!