Hospice of the Northwest

Pros

• Hospice of the Northwest is described as providing compassionate, 24/7 nursing visits along with access to skilled spiritual counseling, social workers, and triage support.
• Reviewers thank specific staff members by name for their loving, thorough care.
• Families report that Hospice of the Northwest helped loved ones pass peacefully at home, with practical supports like shower benches and hospital beds and guidance on medications.
• The organization is praised for treating patients with dignity and for delivering care that makes difficult times more meaningful.
• A funeral director noted that Hospice of the Northwest stood above and beyond, with rapid response, clear communication, and bedside care.
• Harpist visits are highlighted as bringing happiness and comfort to patients.
• Many reviewers say they would highly recommend Hospice of the Northwest to others in need of end-of-life care.
• The staff are described as compassionate, empathetic, and dedicated to quality end-of-life care.

Cons

• One reviewer waited two weeks for intake and reported their loved one died the day before the appointment, blaming the facility for not calling others.
• Several reviews claim the hospice should have recommended contacting a different provider and criticize poor communication and follow-up.
• A reviewer described the organization as a "business" rather than providing compassionate end-of-life care.
• A reviewer gave the service a 3.8 and said staff had zero follow-through, making care seem paycheck-driven rather than empathetic.
• One reviewer described a lazy nurse causing a night of distress and failing to provide timely help.
• There are claims that pain was not adequately managed and that the company lied on several issues.
• Anacortes reviewers called the facility an embarrassment for turning a blind eye to patient abuse.
• Another reviewer stated that following the on-call nurse's advice led to suffering and that they had to rely on their own judgment.

Review

Across Washington, experiences with Hospice of the Northwest run a wide spectrum, from deeply grateful tributes to painful complaints. Several people describe the nonprofit as exactly what their families needed at exceptionally difficult moments, offering steadfast, around-the-clock support as a loved one's end-of-life journey unfolded. In these accounts, the care landscape is framed by compassionate nurses, spiritual counselors, social workers, and a coordinated network that helped families navigate medical decisions, practical needs, and the emotional toll of saying goodbye.

For many families, the most meaningful support came in the form of relentless availability and practical help. They highlight services such as 24/7 nurse visits, on-call triage, and the steady presence of social workers who checked in during crisis moments. Praise rings especially loud for the intimate, person-centered touches: a patient's comfort is improved by things like a hospital bed, a shower bench, or a harpist who lifts spirits during difficult days. Families recount how staff members worked to make the final days as peaceful and dignified as possible, even coordinating with funeral homes and arranging final-day care that allowed loved ones to pass at home with as much comfort and reassurance as possible.

Within the roster of named staff, several caregivers stand out repeatedly for their kindness and competence. Families speak warmly of nurses who arrived quickly, remained available, and provided not only medical support but emotional reassurance. Specific individuals - such as Cici, Rosemary, Melissa, and Suzanne - are remembered for their compassionate guidance, while others point to a bath aide named Reece as someone who offered essential, practical help that made a real difference in caregiving. The presence of a harpist, April, is described as a bright, uplifting moment that brought joy to a household otherwise shadowed by illness. For some families, these individual acts of care formed the backbone of a difficult experience and left lasting gratitude.

Yet the picture is not uniformly positive. A number of reviews center on serious frustrations with intake timing and communication at the outset of hospice care. One heartbreaking account describes waiting two weeks for intake, followed by the death of a loved one the day before the appointment. Others report that the facility was blamed for not contacting the right people or for not coordinating with other providers, sometimes with multiple calls that yielded little in the way of actionable guidance. In Snohomish County, several reviewers state that such delays should have never happened, and they point to gaps in outreach and responsiveness that left families feeling abandoned at a crucial moment.

Beyond intake delays, other reviewers critique inconsistent follow-up, scheduling problems, and a sense that some staff were slow to respond in urgent situations. A common thread is the impression that care often proceeded on the institution's schedule rather than the family's, and that the lack of timely, proactive communication amplified anxiety and suffering. One reviewer explicitly describes a lack of empathy or follow-through, arguing that the organization's actions did not align with what their loved one needed in the most vulnerable hours. Another story notes that following medical advice from an on-call nurse led to avoidable suffering, underscoring the importance of advocacy and clear, well-communicated decision-making in real time.

There are also regional variances in experience. Several comments from Anacortes and surrounding areas accuse certain local providers of neglect or abuse and even advocate reporting to state authorities. In contrast, other entries speak to a consistently high standard of care and a sense of dignity upheld across multiple family experiences. Some reviewers draw a clear distinction between truly excellent care - where staff arrived quickly, communicated openly, and supported families through difficult decisions - and a quieter middle ground where care did not always meet expectations. The mix of praise and criticism suggests that, while the organization can deliver extraordinary, life-affirming support, there are persistent opportunities to improve intake processes, crisis responsiveness, and inter-staff coordination.

Taken together, the collection of reviews paints a nuanced portrait of Hospice of the Northwest. For many families, the organization provides indispensable, compassionate care that brings comfort to patients and practical relief to exhausted caregivers. The presence of attentive staff, the breadth of services - from medical nursing to spiritual counseling to social work - and the ability to enable home-based end-of-life care are described as life-affirming wins during a profoundly difficult time. At the same time, the reviews highlight serious concerns around timing, communication, and consistency in crisis responses. Delays in intake, inconsistent guidance, and perceived gaps in follow-through can intensify distress at a moment when families already feel overwhelmed.

If you or a loved one is evaluating hospice care, these accounts underscore the importance of asking targeted questions up front. Inquire about intake timelines and what constitutes "priority" scheduling, especially for crisis moments. Request a clearly defined on-call protocol, including expected response times and how triage decisions are made. Identify potential points of contact within the care team, and ask for a named nurse or social worker who can serve as a consistent liaison. Most importantly, discuss advance preferences for decision-making, pain management, and comfort measures so families feel empowered to advocate when guidance feels ambiguous. The goal in any limited-time care scenario is to minimize suffering while maximizing dignity, and these testimonials offer both cautionary lessons and hopeful reminders of what thoughtful, coordinated hospice care can achieve.

Cafes

• Calico Cupboard Old Town Cafe & Bakery (0.1 miles)
• Ristretto Coffee Lounge & Wine Bar (0.2 miles)
• Mr T's Family Cafe (0.4 miles)
• Bigfoot Java (0.9 miles)
• Whidbey Coffee (1.8 miles)
• Starbucks (2 miles)
• Starbucks (2 miles)

Parks

• Lions Park (0.2 miles)
• Bakerview Park (1.8 miles)
• Skagit Valley Playing Fields (1.9 miles)
• Skagit River Park (2.8 miles)

Restaurants

• District Brewing (0.3 miles)
• Temperate Habits Brewing Company (0.3 miles)
• Skagit River Brewery (0.3 miles)
• Il Granaio (0.3 miles)
• Pyung Chang Korean BBQ (0.3 miles)
• Mexico Cafe (0.7 miles)
• Dari Delite (0.9 miles)

Transportation

• Skagit Station (0.4 miles)
• Yellow Cab (1.4 miles)
• Burlington Airport Shuttle (3.2 miles)

Pharmacies

• Hilltop Pharmacy (0.6 miles)
• Skagit Valley Medical Center (0.7 miles)
• Rite Aid (0.8 miles)
• Haggen Pharmacy (1.4 miles)
• Makers Compounding Pharmacy (3.2 miles)
• Haggen Pharmacy (3.2 miles)
• Walgreens (3.3 miles)

Physicians

• Cascade Audiology & Hearing Aid Center (0.6 miles)
• Breast Care Center (0.6 miles)
• Skagit Radiology (0.6 miles)
• Trista Pendergrast, ARNP (0.7 miles)
• Skagit Regional Clinics Internal - Deborah North MD (0.7 miles)
• Anderson Marshall W MD - Skagit Regional Clinics (0.8 miles)
• George Ang, MD (0.8 miles)

Hospitals

• Care Center (0.7 miles)
• Public Hospital District 1 Skagit County (0.8 miles)
• PeaceHealth United General Hospital (5.8 miles)

Places of Worship

• Second Mile Mount Vernon (2.7 miles)
• First Baptist Church (3.7 miles)
• Jehovah's Witnesses (4.2 miles)

Theaters

• AMC Cascade Mall 14 (2.8 miles)