Going Home on Hospice from Henry Ford St. John Hospital: A Family Guide

Updated September 2026. Written and reviewed by the Lily Hospice clinical team.

If a doctor at Henry Ford St. John Hospital on Moross Road has suggested hospice, your family chooses which Medicare-certified hospice to use. After a short evaluation, a bed, supplies and comfort medications go to the house. A nurse visits soon after arrival, and going home often takes only a day or two.

Lily Hospice is an independent hospice and is not affiliated with Henry Ford St. John Hospital or Henry Ford Health.

Henry Ford St. John Hospital is at 22101 Moross Rd, Detroit, MI 48236. The main hospital phone is (313) 343-4000. It has served Detroit’s east side and the surrounding suburbs since 1952, and has 641 beds. It sits close to the Grosse Pointes, Harper Woods and southern Macomb County. For many east side families, “St. John’s” has been the family hospital for generations. Hearing the word “hospice” in that familiar place can be hard.

What happens on the hospital side

Henry Ford St. John lists Palliative Medicine among its services. Henry Ford Health says its palliative team serves hospitalized patients with serious illness at all Henry Ford locations. A palliative clinician may help run a family meeting. They explain what treatment can still do, and what it cannot.

After that, a case manager or social worker plans the discharge. They will ask which hospice you want. Henry Ford Health also has its own hospice program, which may be offered. You are free to take it, or to choose any other Medicare-certified hospice that serves your home.

If you are unsure, compare options in our metro Detroit hospice directory. Then use how to choose a hospice to ask each one the same questions.

Five steps to home

1. Say which hospice. Tell the case manager, or call the hospice yourself. The hospice then contacts the hospital.

2. The evaluation. A hospice nurse reviews the records and meets the family, often at the bedside. The attending physician and hospice medical director confirm eligibility.

3. The equipment. A hospital bed, oxygen if needed, a commode and supplies are ordered right away. They usually arrive before the patient, or the same day.

4. The medications. Comfort medications are delivered to the house. The nurse writes down when and how to use each one.

5. The first visit. A hospice nurse comes soon after your loved one is home. From then on, one phone number reaches a nurse day or night.

Details: how fast hospice can start.

Questions worth asking before you leave

• What changed in this hospital stay, and what should we expect next?
• Which medications stop, and which continue for comfort?
• Does the patient need oxygen for the ride, and who is arranging transport?
• Is a do-not-resuscitate order signed for home, if the patient wants one?
• If we live in Macomb County, has the referral gone to a hospice that serves our city?
• Who should we call first if something changes tonight?

Going home to the east side, the Pointes and Macomb

St. John sits on Moross Road on Detroit’s far east side. Patients go home to East English Village, Morningside and other east side neighborhoods. Many go to Grosse Pointe, Harper Woods, Eastpointe, St. Clair Shores or Roseville. Others head north to Warren or Clinton Township.

Lily serves all of these communities. See hospice in Detroit, Wayne County, Macomb County, Warren and Clinton Township.

If the next stop is a nursing facility or assisted living

Some patients cannot safely go home to a house. They may move from St. John to a nursing facility or an assisted living community instead. Hospice starts there as it would at home. The facility provides daily care, and the hospice handles comfort, medications, equipment and family support. The Medicare hospice benefit does not cover room and board in a facility. How hospice works in a facility.

Respite for east side caregivers

Many east side caregivers are spouses in their eighties, or adult children working full shifts. Medicare’s hospice benefit includes respite: a short stay in a contracted facility so the caregiver can rest. Hospice respite care, explained.

How Lily works with families at St. John

Lily is family-owned, Medicare-certified and ACHC-accredited. Our office is in Troy, and we serve Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties. A real person answers at any hour. Evaluation is usually within 24 hours, and often the same day. Admission is often the same day too, including weekends. How to start hospice this weekend.

Common questions

Can we pick a hospice other than Henry Ford’s at St. John?

Yes. You may choose any Medicare-certified hospice that serves your home. Tell the case manager which one you want.

Does it matter if we live in the Grosse Pointes or Macomb County?

Only in that the hospice must serve your city. Lily serves all of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties, including the Grosse Pointes and St. Clair Shores.

How long does it take to get home on hospice?

Often one or two days, and sometimes the same day. The physician order, equipment and transport are the usual time drivers.

Can my mother keep her own doctor?

Yes. Her physician can stay the attending doctor and work with the hospice medical director. Keeping your own doctor on hospice.

What if we change our minds about hospice later?

The patient can stop hospice at any time and return to treatment. They can also change hospice providers once in each benefit period.

Is Lily Hospice part of Henry Ford Health?

No. Lily is an independent, family-owned hospice based in Troy.

Hospice isn’t giving up. It’s showing up.

Call (248) 955-5100. A real person answers, 24 hours a day. Also see our general guide, going home on hospice from the hospital.